A New Man
by Spacebabie
Summary: Luigi has been through a few changes, he's been turned into a Koopa, married and trying to adjust while Gadd, Mario, and the others try to help him change back. Meanwhile Larry has a few problems of his own and they involve the undead.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Mario Bros and related company were created by Shigeru Miyamoto and are owned by Nintendo.

**A New Man**

Chapter 1: A Brand New Day

* * *

It was early, the sun had just risen and nearly everyone was still asleep, at least it was how it felt to Wendy O. Koopa. She did not bother to don her favorite dress, not for breakfast, she still wore her sleeping gown as she made her way to the kitchen. As she passed by the doors of her brothers she could hear their snores, from the deep and guttural snorts and snores from Morton, to the tiny sniffles from the youngest brat.

The doors to Ludwig's room and Iggy's were quiet. She had a feeling Iggy was in his lab, already awake and working on his latest invention, or he might have fallen asleep while he was in his lab. He had done so before. Ludwig might be in his own lab, or he might be at his large pipe organ. He used to be into both chemistry and mechanics with Iggy as his assistant until he had become interested in music. Ludwig's bed was not empty, his young wife, Dru was sleeping in there.

Wendy had felt somewhat jealous that three of her older brothers were able to find someone. Ludwig had married a nice Koopa girl who beheld the same distain for the mushroom kingdom as the rest of the family. Roy was dating Tethys, a princess of the Praniret kingdom, and it won't be long before Roy proposes. Lemmy had a romantic pen pal. Iggy was too busy with his inventions to date, and their father hadn't started to pressurize him yet, not in the same way he ordering Lemmy to start to start physically date his pen pal.

Father hadn't started to ask her to start dating other Koopas or Pranirets; then again she had only been eighteen for a few months.

"Hmmm," Wendy paused to sniff the air when she neared the kitchen. She could detect the hint of pastries baking, overpowered by the sweet aroma of cinnamon. She could also smell the apple wood sausages being cooked and the tangy scent of fruit being sliced. "Something smells good."

Several Goombas and Shyguys were setting the table for breakfast; they had already placed the plates and glasses down and were now arranging the silverware.

A pink one paused in its work and turned around. "Good morning Mistress Wendy. I am sorry the table is not quite complete."

"It is all right," Wendy said. "I woke up a bit early."

"You are not mad?" The shy guy asked.

"Not today," no, she would not loose her tempter today. Today was the day she had planned for weeks. It was the reason why she woke up so early.

"Did you sleep well mistress Wendy?" The Shy Guy remembered his manners.

"I slept quite well," Wendy said. "What is for breakfast? I smell cinnamon rolls. I think."

"Cinnamon biscuits," Kammy Koopa stepped out of the kitchen. Instead of the purple robe and floppy witch's hat she usually donned she was dressed in a bathrobe, a pink fuzzy bathrobe with little red hearts dotting it. "With sausages and a fruit salad." She was followed by a single Troop carrying two plates, each one had at least three biscuits, two sausages along with a large serving of fruit salad. "You will clean your plate. You have a big day planned and you will need your energy."

"I will," Wendy sat down at the place that was set for her. Kammy had filled in the role of mother for Wendy and the rest of the Koopalings, since their own mother had died when Wendy was five and Larry and Morton were practically still toddlers.

"You are one hundred percent sure of this?" Kammy asked.

"Very," Wendy said. She waited until a shy guy had poured her a glass of milk before she took a bite from one of her biscuits.

"Your father will not be pleased."

"He won't know, not until after the honeymoon," she sighed. It was going to take a lot to explain her motives to her father, not to mention her new husband. "He will be busy today."

"Capturing the princess again," Kammy nodded.

"To seal away in one of his fortresses, to only be eventually thwarted by Mario," Why does her father keep kidnapping Princess Peach? That princess was a sugary crybaby doll, just one poke and she could easily be broken. Why couldn't he just let her go and concentrate on taking over another kingdom for a change?

"Don't dwell on your father's plans. You are already making some of your own," Kammy said. "You just need to finish your breakfast first, and then you can move on with your plan. You are taking someone with you?"

"Two of the hammer brothers," Wendy nodded. " Send some of my brothers my way when they wake up, and inform them of the plan."

* * *

The scent wafting in from the oven told Luigi the cookies were done, but he had decided to check just to make certain. Upon opening the oven he could see the treats were in fact, the right shade of golden brown. He turned off the heat and slipped on his oven mitts before he brought the tray of cookies out and set it down on the stove.

"I'll let these cool for a bit," Luigi said once he removed his mitts. "Now, I just need to check on sleeping beauty."

Sleeping beauty was indeed still snoring away under the covers, only his large round nose and thick bushy mustache was seen from under the stack of pillows. Occasionally, Mario's mouth could be seen when he let out a loud snore.

"You are not going to sleep the day away," Luigi grabbed his brother's nose. "Wake up Mario."

"Wa-?" Mario snorted. "What is going on?" He waved his arms about until Luigi let go of his nose.

"About time," Luigi said.

"What are you thinking?" Mario sat up. "Is the Mushroom kingdom under attack or something?"

"No, it is time you woke up."

"That is all?" Mario set his head back down on the pillow. "I thought this was serious."

"Well you should be awake. You have no idea if something does happen to the kingdom, or if someone's pipes have broken."

"You just want to get back at me for waking your butt up for school every morning." Mario slid out of bed. "Hey, what did you fix for breakfast?"

"I poured myself a bowl of cereal," Luigi said." You can do the same for yourself. I baked cookies."

"What kind of cookies?"

"Yoshi cookies," Luigi wagged his finger. "And don't even think about it, Mario. Those cookies are for Yoshi and his friends."

"So you baked some cookies for our dino friends?" Mario asked.

"Why not?" Luigi asked. "I was planning on going to Yo'ster Island for a visit, and since I was going I decided to bake some cookies."

"So you didn't bake them for a certain girl who looks good in yellow?" Mario wiggled his eyebrows. He was answered with a pillow thrown into his face.

* * *

Wendy felt like she had been waiting four hours for her query to emerge from the large house shared by the Mario brothers. She had made several risks to both her appearance and her safety. Her bright pink high heels had made several divots in the ground that was still damp from the morning dew, and she knew the gunk had stuck to the bottom of her shoes, crouching down she had to be careful to not get any grass stains on the bottom lavender half of her dress. She wanted to look her best when she came across her future husband.

She had felt it had become almost routine, sneaking around the Mushroom Kingdom, avoiding retainers and guardsmen and even Mario himself to get their house, and nearly everyday she kept herself hidden, not to spy on Mario, but to watch Luigi and follow him around.

There had to be something wrong with her, for her to be falling for Luigi. She knew how and when the fascination begun. It was months ago, not long after Ludwig and Dru had exchanged rings. She was daydreaming one day, about the handsome Koopa, or Praniret she will someday marry, but no matter what her daydreams always ended with the image of Casanova Koopa. He was so attractive, so sexy, that accent of his caused her to melt whenever she thought about him. The way he spoke, and his romantic gestures.

If only he wasn't Luigi. Why couldn't have been the real thing? Why did he have to be a human? She was furious at him. He played with her heart, he used her. Now years later she realized he was able to be as devious as she was and the more she thought of it the more she wished he stayed that way.

"Hey sis," Larry tapped her shell from behind causing her to nearly jump.

"Larry," Wendy balled up her fists and turned around. "Don't you ever sneak up on me, like that again.

"Whoa, sorry," Larry held up his hands. He looked like he had just woken up and slipped on his favorite basketball shirt and a pair of shorts. "Dad is getting ready to kidnap Princess Peach," he sighed deeply. "Again."

"I know," Wendy did not remove her gaze from Luigi. "I heard he is taking the brat with him." She didn't want to think about Junior, that little snot thinks he is going to someday inherit the throne? Not by a long shot.

"Yeah," Larry said. "I heard from Kammy, that you were getting married. How come you didn't tell us, and when, and to who?"

"Larry, remember when Luigi turned himself into a Koopa to thwart our plans? Do you remember how sexy he was?" She parted the shrubbery again and peered watched as the younger of the true brothers stumbled along the way. She had grown to love that clumsy charm of his. She wished he would wear something else for a change. It was the usual t-shirt and overalls, although this day he had the colors switched. He would look nice in a suit, or a tux.

"Why are you asking me this?" Larry asked.

"Oh never mind, I just need your help. I'll distract Luigi while you gently knock him out. Take these two guys with you." She pointed to the two Hammer Brothers who were hiding behind a different bush.

"Gently?" Larry asked.

"Just do it."

* * *

Luigi stared up at the sky as he approached the nearest pipe that would lead him to a short cut to Yo'ster Isle. The sky was pale blue with a few white clouds here and there. It looks like it was going to be another and beautiful day and he hoped the weather will stay nice during his visit.

He had only been walking for a half hour when he felt a cold prickle creep up the back of his neck. The feeling he had when he was certain someone was following him, although this feeling was creepier than usual, like he had a few Boo's following him around. He spun around to see who was following him.

It was the only female Koopaling and she seemed to be a bit too eager to see him. She had gone through a bit of a growth spurt in the last few years he had known her. She had also grown a pair of slender horns, and taken to wear a pink gown with thin straps and a second purple skit that ended at the knees. Her shoulders were covered with purple armored pads, each with a single spike. She still wore the red beads around her neck, as well as the golden bracelets, pink high heels and that large bow on the top of her head.

"Luigi wait," Wendy Koopa waved at him.

"Whatever you are scheming you can just forget it," Luigi increased his speed. In truth he knew he would be able to defeat her if she tried to attack.

"I just want to talk." Wendy said.

"Yeah right," Luigi said, but slowed down just the same. She was up to something, and as much as he disliked to stay around a Koopa for long he had to find out what she was up to.

"Isn't it a pretty day?" Wendy smiled. She pressed her palms together.

"It is," Luigi frowned. "Is your father planning something?"

Wendy did not loose her smile. "Just the usual, and you know you brother will ruin his plans. I just want to tell you. I am getting married today."

"Oh really?" Luigi blinked. Why was she telling him this? "To who?"

He never got to hear her answer, something hard had struck him on top of his head, sending him into a sea of darkness.

* * *

**A/N:**

Whoa, this is the first time I wrote video game fanfiction. Yes this fic is influenced by the games and the animated DiC series. Rating will probably go up a bit later.

Pranirets are a cousin to the Koopas, but are mor aquatic in nature.

* * *


	2. Captured

**Chapter 2: Captured**

* * *

Wendy watched in shock as the mallet struck Luigi on the top of his head causing him to close his eyes and fall backward on the ground.

"Larry," she hissed and kneeled by Luigi's side. The human was still breathing by the rise and fall of his chest and when she placed a finger against his neck she could feel a pulse.

"What?" Larry asked.

"Did you not hear what I said?" Wendy rose to her feet and turned to where her brother stood. "I SAID GENTLY," she roared.

"Now don't go accusing me of stuff I didn't exactly do," he stepped back away from her. "I tried to do it the best I could, given the circumstances." He took another step away from her, before he turned around and ran.

She chased after her brother. "You could have killed him."

"I wasn't the one who threw it," Larry pointed at the two Hammer brothers who were inspecting Luigi's unconscious form. "They did."

"But you ordered them, you should have told them to be gentle."

"I think it is a bit impossible to be gentle and knock someone out," Larry said. He paused when he came to a hillside. "Like I have said, I did the best that I could." He started to climb.

Wendy climbed up after him. "Come back here."

"I'm not that stupid," Larry said once he reached the top.

"You are if you can't follow simple instructions."

"It is impossible to gently knock someone out."

"Don't argue," She growled and caused her brother to cower in a corner.

"Look he is still breathing." Larry pointed at Luigi.

"I can see that," she turned to the two Hammer brothers. "Bind his arms and legs and carry him back to our castle."

"Yes, Mistress," one of the two helmet wearing Koopas said as they both removed the rope from the burlap sack they had carried with them.

"Why do you care if he is alive or not?" Larry asked. He was still curled in a ball with his arms shielding his head.

"Because he is the one I am marrying." She turned away from Larry. She had to supervise the Hammer Brothers to make sure they do the task right.

"What?" Larry lowered his arms. "Did you just say what I think you did?"

"Are you going to argue with me again?" Wendy glared.

"No," Larry stood back up. "I just want to make certain you said what I think you said, and you told me you are going to marry Luigi?" He raised his light blue eyebrows. "This Luigi? The one who is not only a human but also our enemy?"

"That is exactly what I said." She kneeled next to Luigi once again. The two brothers were gathering long branches and bringing them back to where they were. "He is perfect."

"You know he won't marry you," Larry said.

He shouldn't have said those words. Wendy turned around and fixed another ice-cold glare on her brother. "He will," she hissed.

"Okay, lets just say the conk on the head actually made him realize he was in love with you. You already know, Dad isn't going to be happy."

"That will be his problem," Wendy removed Luigi's hat. He had such nice brown hair, and the constant wear of his hat, seemed to have freeze it in shape. She ran her fingers through his hair. It was nice and soft and brought back memories of how she used to play with Ludwig's hair and try to stylize it, and the jealousy she felt for her brothers who did have hair.

"I have already gone over the plans with Kamek and Kammy and they should have explained it to our brothers by now. They even have the cathedral booked in Marrymore."

"But that place his pretty ritzy." Larry said

"Kammy had it booked in advance."

"When were you going to tell us this?"

"Today," she stood back up when the Hammer brothers had returned. "Kammy and Kamek are filling in the others as we speak. Do you still have your suit from Ludwig's wedding?"

"It's in the corner of my closet." Larry said as the two grunts tore apart the sacks and stretched the material across the two limbs, creating a stretcher.

"You are going to wear it again."

"Okay," Larry sighed. "But it is gonna be awkward getting married to a human."

"He won't be human for long," Wendy smiled.

"What?" Larry blinked.

"You'll see." She watched as Hammer bros placed Luigi on a makeshift stretcher. "Now, lets get out of here before anyone sees us."

* * *

It took the four of them less than an hour to carry Luigi back to the castle, using the underground network of pipes, not once did he wake up, causing Wendy to worry, until he started to mumble in his sleep.

"Where is everyone?" Larry asked the Paratroopa guarding the entrance.

"They are in the main hall," The winged Troopa pointed up. "On the second floor."

Larry thanked him before they took the elevator to the second floor.

Nearly everyone was there, save for their father, who they knew was making another attempt at capturing the princess, along with their youngest brother. Roy wasn't there, and neither was Tethys, but then again she was vacationing with her family.

"Roy is still working out," Lemmy said. He was leaning with his back against the wall, clad in only a purple shirt, decorated with golden yellow stars. "We tried to speak to him, but he said he will be up here in a minute."

"He better be here soon," Wendy said and turned to the Hammer Brothers. "Set him down here, and becareful."

"I still can't believe you are going through this," Iggy said as he adjusted his glasses. "And with him."

"I already had this discussion with Larry," Wendy kneeled next to Luigi. "Everything will be well," she said softly. She removed his hat once again and stroked his hair.

"That is a bit unsettling," Iggy removed his glasses and began to clean them on the lab coat he always wore.

"Are you certain he is the one?" Dru asked. She was standing next to Ludwig while her husband was looking through a book of sheet music. She was pale orange in color with a silvery white head and shell. Her dark hair was cut in a pageboy bob. She was dressed in a lavender tube top and a short black vinyl skirt. The only jewelry she wore was the silver cuff bracelets and armbands.

"I am certain," Wendy looked up at them. She noticed the leather bound violin case resting next to Dru. "Are you going to play?"

"Do you have any objection?" Dru raised her dark brows.

"No, I love to hear you play along with Ludwig." Wendy placed a small kiss on Luigi's nose before she stood back up.

"Ugh," Dru winced. "Are you sure you want to marry a human. I heard the males have hair on their legs, and chest, and some have it on their backs."

"I am certain," Wendy nodded. "And he won't be human much longer."

"She still won't explain what that means," Larry said.

"What kind of food will be there?" Morton asked. "I know there is going to be cake, but what else will there be?"

"Is that all you think about?" Iggy asked.

"There is a menu that was mailed to me," Wendy said. "I handed it to Kamek. He can show it to you after he and Kammy perform the spell."

"Spell?" Morton blinked.

"Hey," Lemmy pointed at Luigi. "He is waking up."

* * *

Luigi heard several voices as he woke up, not one belonged to his brother, or Peach, or Toad, or Yoshi. He thought he had them somewhat recognized. He was certain he had heard those voices before.

"This one is it," one voice said. "My latest masterpiece. This one I shall play on the organ."

"I think Ludwig is the only one who is as excited about the wedding as Wendy," another voice said.

Ludwig? Wendy? The first voice did belong to Ludwig Von Koopa, and the second did sound like it came from one of the younger Koopalings. It had to belong to Morton; he was one that never did know when to shut up, once he got started.

Luigi slowly opened his eyes and saw several blurred Koopas gathered around. He felt the coolness of a stone floor against the side of his cheek and when he tried to move his arms he found they were tied to his body.

Great, he was captured by Bowser's forces again. He wondered if they had captured anyone else of just him. The last time they had him, they had also captured, Mario, Toad, and a few other retainers.

"What the heck is the going on?" a gruff voice said. It was a voice that caused another shiver to travel down Luigi's spine. "I heard Wendy was getting married...and lookie here, we caught one of them plumbers."

Luigi rolled on his back to see Roy Koopa staring down at him. The pink headed Koopa was still wearing his red rimmed sunglasses, along with red spiked shoulder-pads and a black armor chest plate.

"Don't touch him, Roy," Wendy said. "He is mine."

"I heard you was getting hitched," Roy said. "Who is the lucky guy?"

"Luigi of course."

"Wait, what?" Luigi lifted his head and tried to maneuver himself so he could see Wendy.

"Excuse me?" Roy shouted. "Did you get jumped on the head too many times?"

"Everything will make sense soon," Wendy said. "Once the magikoopas are done you will all get dressed in your tuxes."

"I aint wearing no monkey suit."

"Yes you will," Wendy growled.

"There is going to be cake," Morton said. "You don't want to miss that."

"I don't remember proposing," Luigi said. He had no idea what was going on, and when did Wendy O. Koopa suddenly have an interest in him?

"Shhh," Wendy placed a claw of his lips. "Once you're changed you will see."

"Changed?" Luigi asked. He did not like the way she said it. He wasn't sure what she meant, and he had a feeling it wasn't referring to clothes.

* * *

**A/N: **Well I introduced Dru in this chapter. We will see what Wendy means in the next chapter "Transformed" 


	3. Transformation

**Chapter 3: Transformation**

Luigi had to think; he had to figure a way to escape. Right now his chances did not look, nor sound real good. First of all his arms were bound to his sides by rope, and a third piece had kept his ankles together, even if he could manage to get back on his feet he would only be able to hop. Secondly he was in the home of his enemy surrounded by most of Bowser's children and his two most skilled mages, third of all he still had a pounding headache from where he was struck, and he knew he had to stay awake for a day or two since he received a concussion.

"I know it feels strange now," Wendy said.

"Uncomfortable actually," Luigi tried to roll away from her, but she had her hand on his shoulder.

"I am sorry you feel this way, but this is the only way, are you not lonely? Do you not wish to be married someday, start a family?"

"Someday," he stared up at her. "When did you decide to marry me?"

"Good question," Roy said. "I also would like to know."

"You two need to step out of the way," Kammy Koopa said. She was one of the few non-family members that surrounded Luigi. She stood a few feet from him, clad in her usual purple robe and floppy hat. A pair of red-rimmed cat eyeglasses rested on top of her yellow beak. Silver hair hung from outside the hat.

"Everyone needs to clear out of the radius," Kamek added. He was standing next to Kammy. His hand was holding hers, as if they were a romantic couple. He was also dressed in his robe, dark blue instead of purple and wore his glasses.

"You could just call it the blast zone," Kammy said. "There is no need to get technical."

"Some of us take our magic seriously," Kamek sighed.

"And I don't?" Kammy asked. She held her wand up high, and for a second, Luigi had thought she was going to strike Kamek on the top of the head with it.

"No," Wendy waved her hands. "Don't argue now." She rose to her feet. "You have to remain in sync with each other, that is what you told me."

"She is right," Kammy held out her hand again. "We can't release are chi, the spell will not be permanent if we keep fighting."

"Of course," Kamek took her hand in his and the two inhaled deeply. "We are back to where we should be."

"Good," she grabbed Roy by the arm and dragged him away.

"Everyone is clear," Kammy said and pointed her wand at Luigi.

"What is going on," Luigi tried to sit up and fell over. He had a feeling he was about to get his answer, and he wasn't going to like it.

"You will see," Kamek, pointed his wand at the plumber.

"Luigi who was human born." They chanted together.

"Younger one of the Mario brothers."

"You shall take on a reptilian form."

"And be Luigi Koopa, now and forever."

Energy rained down from their wands. Luigi tried to roll away, but he was struck head on, and was bathed in a golden light.

The second Luigi was in cased in light he felt pain all over his body. He felt his clothes shrink, growing tighter but that wasn't the worst part. He felt some of his fingers being forced together, the same for his toes. He could hear his gloves being torn, as well as the bones in his hands snapping and popping as they were being reshaped. He felt something cut through his fingertips from within.

His feet felt the same in his feet, the material of his shoes became too tight, he felt more of the sharp knife like projections in three parts of his feet, while his skin prickled and itched.

His whole back was in agony; he felt something tear through the flesh in several places, from within. More popping came from his spin. It felt like it was breaking and the parts that broke were forcing themselves through his skin. This pain was the worst; it spread from the shoulders down to his bottom, where he felt another smaller pain.

There were two new pains in his head, and they were not where he was struck earlier. They were on the sides of his head, where again he felt something pierce through the skin.

His whole mouth ached, from beneath his eyes to his chin. The cracking of the bones were louder to his ears, he could also hear the squishy sounds of his muscles reshaping. The pain was a so intense, tear streamed out of his eyes, and he cried out in pain, a cry that turned into a frightening roar at the end.

Finally it was over. The pain stopped but he felt a tingling numb sensation all over his body. He also felt some extra weight on his back and something else on his backside. His hands and feet felt uncovered. The rest of his clothes felt tight.

He stared at his feet, his shoes were ripped to shreds and the leathery tatters were strewn across his feet. His feet that had enlarged into a pair of orange Koopa feet

"No," Luigi gasped and stared at his hands. Like his shoes, his gloves were torn. His hands were orange, four fingers instead of five and ended in sharp white claws.

He grabbed his face and felt his mustache, along with a long reptilian snout. He used his tongue to investigate and sure enough his mouth was filled with razor sharp teeth.

He reached around for his bottom and felt the Koopa tail that had grown there.

"No," he repeated and stared down at his body. The ropes were torn during the transformation, along with his clothes. The straps of his overalls were torn in two. Whenever he moved his arms he ripped his sleeves even further. "I'm a Koopa," Luigi mumbled. He could hear the others in the room clucking their tongues and he can picture them gloating at his misfortune. He stared at them. Roy and Larry both stared with their mouths hanging open. The two magikoopas seemed pleased with themselves. The other female Koopa tilted her head as she studied him.

"Oh Luigi," Wendy gasped and kneeled by his side." You are even more handsome than the last time."

"This was your idea," Luigi accused and tried to stand up, only to rip his clothing even further. "Why?"

"As I have once said, Casanova is the only reptile for me." She grabbed onto his arm and nuzzled her snout against his cheek. "You even smell nice."

"I--" Luigi felt his face flush and heard a few chuckles and fake gags from the others in the room. "Okay, you have another gander of me as a Koopa, could you change me back?"

"Can't," Kamek shook his head. "The double team of Kammy and myself caused this transformation to be permanent."

"I'm going to be a Koopa forever?" Luigi gulped. Did that mean he was going to have to reside at Bowser's, eventually join forces and help overtake the Mushroom kingdom? Would he ever see his friends again? What would Mario say or do? He stared at his hands again. He was going to have to get used to working with them, become accustomed to writing with them, not too mention using wrenches and other tools again.

"Yes," Wendy kissed the side of his face. "Isn't it wonderful?"

"Wonderful?" Luigi repeated. For some reason he did not feel as repulsed by her kisses as he thought he would be. He also noticed she had a nice scent.

"Yes wonderful," She held onto him in an embrace. "You will be my Koopa prince."

"I guess I was wrong," the female Koopa called Dru said. "He is handsome in this form."

"You are not going to make me jealous are you?" Ludwig asked.

"I never will," Dru tickled his chin before she ran her claws through his thick cloud of deep blue hair.

"Mistress Wendy," Kammy waved her hand. "Could you come here for a second?" She seemed to be holding something in her hand.

"This won't be long," she kissed his cheek again. "Larry, I want you and the others to get in your tuxes, now, and help Luigi fit into his."

"C'mon," Roy grabbed one of Luigi's arms "We are gonna squeeze into some monkey suits. He pulled Luigi up to his feet.

Luigi held out his arms. He was not used to standing on his new feet, nor was he used to the weight caused by his shell. He held out his arms until he felt he achieved his center of balance. He took one step, and fell forward.

"Gotcha," Lemmy said as he caught him by the left arm.

"Be careful of that first step," Iggy said as he held his right. "It's a doozy."

"Thanks," Luigi said. He felt his overalls slipping down his legs. He slid his arm from Iggy's grasp and reached for them.

"Leave them," Iggy said. "You are about to put on something else."

"I can't walk around with nothing on," Luigi said. "Not without any pants."

"You are still thinking like a human," Iggy held up a finger. "Of course a minute ago you still were a human, but as you noticed, most of us are not wearing any pants or shorts or anything." He pointed at the only article of clothing he was wearing besides the spiked bands was a ratty old lab coat, covered with stains.

"I guess so," Luigi released his hold on his over alls and carefully stepped out of them, with Lemmy giving him support.

"We need to take this as well," Larry removed the remains of Luigi's hat from his head. "Don't worry, you will get a new one just like it, but it will fit."

"You can't get married with your hat on," Lemmy said.

"Besides," Larry added. "We need to style your hair, and I'm the only one who knows how it should look."

"This has to be some kind of dream," Luigi said as he was dragged away.

* * *

"What is it?" Wendy whispered as she approached the Koopa witch. She had a feeling Kammy wanted to be a bit secretive.

"I have a little gift for you," Kammy said. "Something for you to wear at your wedding."

"What is it?" She could not remove her eyes from Luigi. He was trying to stand on his new and improved feet and when he took a step he stumbled, and would have fallen if Iggy and Lemmy hadn't caught him.

"A bottle of special perfume," Kammy held a pink glass bottle in her hands. "If you wear this then he will not be able to resist you at all."

"Oh perfect," she accepted the gift. She still couldn't remove her eyes from Luigi. He was shuffling along just fine now, except his overalls were of course loose and were slipping off him. He had such a fine green shell, still glossy from being freshly formed.

"I'll put this on in Marrymore," Wendy said. "Right after I slip into my dress." She couldn't wait to put on her dress and get prettied up for her wedding.

Kammy nodded. "You better hurry, you don't know when your father will return. Kamek and I will stay back here."

"He'll probably want you to be another obstacle for Mario," Wendy said. Everything fell perfectly to plan. Her father would be busy with the kidnapping, and Mario would be to busy trying to rescue Peach to notice his brother was missing.


	4. The Wedding

**Chapter 4: The Wedding**

* * *

They traveled through the vast network at pipes. Wendy lead everyone, while she carried her dress in a clear bag, her shoes, train, pearls, and perfume in various boxes. It was a large amount to carry, but she was able to manage while Iggy held the map.

"Don't I have a say in the matter," Luigi asked. He had finally gotten used to walking on his new feet, and he was dressed in his tuxedo, and it may have appeared to have been a bit loose on him, better a little loose than way to tight, His hair was gelled up and styled as a pompadour, even his moustache appeared to have been groomed.

"Do you want to say anything?" Larry sneered. His Mohawk was pulled back flat and held in an elastic, forming a spiky ponytail, the Iggy and Lemmy had similar hairstyles. "What human woman would want to be with a Koopa, and you have to admit our sister is the most beautiful Koopa of them all."

"Excuse me?" Ludwig cleared his throat and gave their younger brother a look.

"One of the prettiest," Larry rolled his eyes. "Dru and Wendy are the prettiest Koopas around, and Tethys is the prettiest Praniret of them all, and I am certain Lemmy's girlfriend is also pretty."

"Yes," Lemmy nodded.

"Did she send you a picture?" Morton asked.

"Yes," Lemmy nodded again. "Sent me a picture." A blush formed in his cheeks.

"Did you send her a pic of yourself?" Morton asked.

"Yes," Lemmy pressed his talons together.

"I'm surprised she still writes to you," Morton chuckled.

"Enough," Wendy grabbed Morton by the horn. "This has nothing to do with Lemmy and his girl friend. This is my day. We are going into the chapel, you will all get into your places, Ludwig and Dru will play beautiful music, and then I shall walk down the aisle."

"I admit Wendy is pretty," Luigi placed a hand over his nostrils." I don't remember it smelling this bad down here."

"Koopas have a better sense of smell than humans," Roy grabbed onto Luigi's snout. "You will grow to appreciate the benefit of being a member of our species."

"Don't grab too hard," Wendy said. If Roy harms her soon to be husband, then he is going to be in a world of hurt.

"Sorry," Roy released his hold on Luigi. "I wish you told me sooner. I could have invited Tethys."

"It was a bit of a last minute situation," Wendy said.

"We are here," Iggy pointed to another pipe, " We just go through this pipe, and Marrymore is on the other side."

"Finally," Wendy peered into the pipe. She could see the romantic and beautiful landscape of the village. It was still day time, but the sun had started to set.

"I don't want to interrupt another wedding that is in process," Luigi said.

"We aren't," Wendy smiled. "Everything has been planned. Places everyone."

* * *

Wendy slipped into the cathedral's bathroom and quickly removed her usual dress and replaced it with her wedding gown. "Something old," it had been her mother's dress. She didn't have many things that belonged to her mother. She remembered when she first came across the dress. It was a few years after her death, and Wendy was playing hide and seek with Iggy and Lemmy. She had decided to hide in one of the closets that was never used, and when she stepped inside she saw the dress, hanging in clear plastic. It was then she had realized she had stepped inside the closet that had all of her mothers old things, all of her jewelry, her favorite dresses, her shoes, the little clear bottles of perfume and lotion she used to collect. The scrap books, everything. It was also the last time she was in that closet, at least until her teen years.

"Something new." She changed into her new shoes. They were white and shiny, and the heels were shorter. She had seen pictures of brides dressed in beautiful gowns and they wore shoes with at least three-inch heels. She knew they would trip and fall over, and of course some of them did. She was not about to risk embarrassment for that level of fashion.

"Something borrowed," she put on the pearl necklace she had borrowed, correct, stolen from Peach. "And something blue." She slid on the garter before she removed her bow and placed on her wedding crown fitted with train. "And the finishing touch." She stared at the bottle of perfume, good ole Koopa no 9, the perfume that contained natural pheromones. She sprayed it on, and knew full well that it would not have any effect on her brothers, due to their relation.

* * *

Ludwig had begun to play as soon as she stepped out. Her eldest brother had selected a beautiful song; the notes were like pure magic as he played. Dru accompanied him on her violin, adding more magic to the melody. Wendy tried to walk with the beat of the music, but her heart wanted her to walk even faster. She wanted the wedding to begin.

Luigi stood at the front of the podium. His face had a look of pure terror in his eyes, but he couldn't run, even if he didn't have both Morton and Roy to hold him back he would not be able to run on his feet, not if he had trouble walking earlier, running is out of the question.

Wendy kept her eyes on her groom as she approached him. She didn't even notice the man behind the podium.

"We are gathered here today," the minister was an old toad. He had large bushy eyebrows, a neat and square shaped beard and long moustache, similar to the whiskers of a catfish. His large hat was black and worn like old leather and speckled with white spots.

Wendy did not pay any attention to his words, and instead stared into Luigi's eyes. Luigi's eyes were the most beautiful shade of blue. He had a deep green face that matched his shell and his horns were like polished ivory.

Luigi's nostrils twitched during the procession and the fear in his eyes was replaced with one of desire. He smacked his lips once after he blinked his eyes and shook his head a few times. When he reached for her hand she grabbed back.

"Do you Luigi-" The old toad blinked a few times. "Luigi is it?" He read the name in the book in front of him and stared at the couple. "I thought I was marrying that young fellow, the brother of Mario, I forgot what their last name was.

"I am Luigi," Luigi said in a dreamy tone of voice.

"I see, although that Luigi is human."

"They have the same name," Wendy said.

"I see," the old toad nodded. "Do you Luigi take Wendy as your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, love and respect, in poorness and in wealth, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

"I d-d-d-d." Luigi adjusted his collar. "I d-d-d-o do do." The perfume had taken its full effect.

Wendy nearly fainted when she heard the words. Luigi was hers. They were going to be a couple. She almost ignored the same question repeated to her..

"Ahem," the minister cleared his throat. "I shall repeat myself. Do you Wendy take Luigi as your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, love and respect, in poorness and in wealth, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

"I do," she said.

"You may exchange the rings." The old shroom said.

"I have them." Iggy held out his hands where a pair of golden rings rested on each palm.

"Thank you," Wendy accepted the band for Luigi and slid it up his finger, only reaching the halfway point before it became stuck. A few sparkles appeared on the band and it widened enough for it slide all the way.

Luigi took the second band, the one with the sparkling diamond and slid it onto Wendy's finger. This time the problem was in reverse, with the ring being too large, but as before it sparkled before it shrank to fit her finger. Either Kammy or Kamek had enchanted the rings and she had to remember to thank them later.

"Now you may kiss the bride."

It was the moment Wendy was waiting for. She closed her eyes when Luigi placed his lips against hers. The kiss was better than last time.

"Wendy," Luigi breathed her name.

"Yes?" Wendy asked.

He didn't say anything and kissed her again, only it was deeper, and fiercer than last time.

"Ahem," the minister cleared his throat. "May I remind you we are in a church."

Wendy peeled her new husband off her. "Sorry. Now Luigi dear, we can wait until we are in the suite. Let's have something to eat first."

* * *

Morton did not care much about the wedding. He did admit Wendy did look nice in her gown, and Dru was pretty in her little red dress as she played the violin. He had noticed Wendy was wearing a unusual perfume and Luigi was acting odd, right before the former human was being fussy about the whole thing, now Luigi was all over his sis, but Morton chalked it up to Luigi actually falling for her.

Once the ceremony was over they ran to the reception hall, and sweet Shy Guy on a pogo stick did was there a spread. There were all sorts of salads, melon balls, tasty wings, mozzarella sticks, something that looked like turnovers, egg rolls, pizza rolls, a few fondue pots, and that raw fish stuff Wendy liked.

At the end of the table was the cake. It was four layers tall, covered in mostly white frosting with pink and red trim. Morton had no idea if it was a chocolate cake, or a vanilla cake, or just a basic yellow cake. He also had no idea if it was going to come to life. Their father had mentioned once when Smithy took over the fortress and he had made Mario and some of his friends temporary members of the troop they came across a large cake that came to life.

"I better not take any chances," Morton proceeded towards the large pastry and grabbed the nearest knife.

"Just what do you think you are doing?" Lemmy asked from behind.

"What does it look like I am doing?" Morton asked. The tip of the knife was inches away from the frosting.

"You look like you are about to cut into the cake," Lemmy grabbed his wrist. "You know the bride and groom are supposed to cut it."

"I wasn't," Morton had to think fast. "I was just going to poke it."

"Poke it?" Lemmy repeated.

"Yeah, poke it. Just to make certain it won't come alive and attack us. Dad told us about the last time he was here. He said a huge cake had actually come to life. You remember that story. It was a wedding cake, and it was here, and baked by the same guy. We can't take any chances. The cake might come to life again."

"Of all the pathetic excuses you can come up with you chose this," Lemmy rolled his eyes.

"You don't believe what our father said?" Morton gasped. "I thought everyone believed him."

"I did believe him, and if I remember correctly, father said the cake in question was taller than this, and the top part had something that resembled a face."

"I still say you cannot be too safe these days."

"Come on," Lemmy grabbed him by the shoulder and dragged him away and much to Morton's chagrin, to the end of the line.

Both he and Lemmy grabbed paper plates and filled it up with the various foods.

"What is this?" He picked up something that looked like a cracker, but it was covered with strange brown paste and what looked like olive slices. "Is this bean dip?" He sniffed it. It did not smell like bean dip, but it still smelled delicious.

"No," chef Torte shook his head. "That is a canapé."

"Can of what?" Morton asked again before he placed the cracker in his mouth and ate it. "Whatever it is it is good."

"Just fill your plate," Lemmy sighed.

"Yeah, less talky and more eating," Morton placed more of the cracker treats on his plate.

He didn't say anything else until he came across the raw fish. "What is this called again, Sissy? Shoe she, sashi?"

"Sushi," Torte glared.

"Oh yeah, Sushi," Morton placed a few rolls on his plate before he pointed to the turnovers. "What kind of turnovers are those? Apple, blueberry, raspberry?"

"None," Chef Torte raised his fists. "They are calzones. They are filled with meats and cheese, and peppers. Why didn't you read the menu, you live in a castle, you should not act like a plebe."

"I am so sorry about my little brother's rudeness," Lemmy dragged Morton away after Morton had managed to grab one of the calzones.


	5. Morning After

**Chapter 5**:** The Morning after**

Once the last crumb of cake was eaten, and the last bit of frosting licked up, Wendy took Luigi by the hand and led him from the reception hall to the hotel.

"Greetings," the toad at the front desk said. "Do you have a reservation?"

"We have the suite booked," Wendy said. "It is under the name of Koopa."

"Ah yes Koopa," the toad flipped through the pages in the book. "Yes, we do have you here." He rang a bell.

"Yes sir?" a smaller and younger toad raced into the room.

"Show this young couple to their room." The Desk shroom said.

"Right at once." The bellhop said and turned to Wendy. "Follow me please."

The Bellhop led the two of them to a large and lavish room with thick shag carpeting and lace trimmed curtains. It was one of the most beautifully decorated hotel rooms Wendy had been in, well it would have been if she had stayed in a few hotels, usually she would be in her room, or the prettiest room of whatever palace she had conquered.

"This place is perfect," Wendy, pressed her hands together. "Isn't it perfect, Luigi?"

"Everything is perfect," Luigi breathed. He had already removed the jacket part of his tuxedo and placed it on top of the counter.

"We have a nice bath robe for to use hanging over here," the bellhop pointed to the pink fuzzy robe. The annoying little toad had yet to shut up since he had arrived and Wendy wanted him to leave. "Now remember, if there is anything that you need, just ring and one of us will be right here."

"Thank you," Wendy thanked him through gritted teeth. "I think we will be fine for now."

The toad nodded and smiled. He still wasn't moving.

"Here you go," she placed a coin in his hand.

"Enjoy your stay," the bellhop said before he left.

"Finally," she said. "I thought he would never leave." She turned back to Luigi who had nearly torn his pants off. He was completely naked. "I guess you can't wait." She removed her crown and train.

"No more waiting," Luigi pulled her close to him and gave her a warm soft kiss. His hands gripped her shoulders; claws nearly sank in through the material.

"Just one more minute," she stepped back. She was not going to allow that gown to be damaged. She had to keep it preserved, not only for her mother, but because of the new memories it helped create. She slid down the zipper in the back and stepped out of the gown. "I just have to put this away." She covered the gown in plastic and hung it up, next to the bathrobe. "Now you may take me."

Luigi pulled her close again and covered her snout in kisses before he trailed down to her neck, and along her shoulders. She returned the favor and kissed his neck, causing him to emit a soft growl.

Her eyes widened when she felt a hand on her chest and she stared down to see Luigi cupping her.

"To the bed she whispered." She sat down at the edge of the bed and felt Luigi gently push her down onto the bed.

* * *

Wendy fought hard to catch her breath. Her heart was still drumming and her mind was still a whirl from what had just happened. It was almost like a dream. They were right when they said it was going to hurt, and there would be some blood, but the second time it felt a little better, as was the third, and after she had lost count.

"Wow," she breathed. It was the only word that had come to mind. Next to her, Luigi was fighting hard to try and catch his own breath. "You have a lot of energy," Wendy breathed between gasps.

Luigi said nothing, only nodded.

Wendy nuzzled up to her husband. She noticed the damage they had done to the sheets, the various rips and punctures from their spikes. She looked up at the ceiling and stared at the few scorch marks left by Luigi. Her father won't want to receive the bill their damage had caused.

* * *

It was the oddest dream he had ever had, but it was over for Luigi. He was back in his own bed, back in the house he shared with Mario. He could even hear Mario whistling in the shower.

Wait a second; Mario is up before him? That would only mean one thing. He had overslept and was already behind on his plans for the day. He wouldn't have time to bake cookies. He just needed to shower, dress, eat something, and then leave for Yo'ster isle.

Luigi smacked his lips, pausing when his tongue ran over his teeth. They were too sharp to be human teeth. His whole mouth felt different, so did his tongue. He bolted up in bed, and to a slight painful discovery, nearly sat on his own tail.

He had a tail, and a snout filled with sharp teeth. He was also in a strange room. Looking down he saw the torn sheet and at his hands he saw a golden ring.

It wasn't a dream. He really had been turned into a Koopa and married Wendy, and they made love.

"No," he placed his head in his hands. Was this how it was going to be? Was he going to live with his new Koopa family? Was he going to be in one of the various fortresses, waiting to attack his own brother, or would he mentally regress into Mr. L. He grabbed onto the nearest pillow and held it against his chest. He had to figure how to get out of there, try and see if there was some way for him to transform back into a human, maybe Gadd would know how.

He also wanted to know why did he agree to marry her. He went over the evening in his mind. He was at the podium, being held by her brothers and the second she was near him he felt drunk, no he felt like he did whenever he went to the dentist and received the gas. He was out of his mind and he actually wanted her.

"Luigi?" Wendy said in a soft tone. "What is wrong dear?"

Luigi looked up to see Wendy standing by the bed. The towel draped around her form accentuated her curves, and she smelled so nice and clean, her natural scent was very pleasing, and her eyes had actual concern in them.

"Why?" Luigi croaked. "Why me?"

"I don't know how," she shrugged. "I fell in love with Casanova, and he doesn't exist."

"You wanted to kill me."

"I did once, and then I watched you from afar, watched you fight and fell in love with you. There was something about you. I don't know what it is. I think this timid and sweet side to you is kind of adorable. I know what humans want and you wouldn't fall in love with a Koopa."

"I'm not shallow," Luigi told her. "You are very pretty member of your-I mean our species." He had to get used to that part. He was now the same species as she was, and there might be a chance that Gadd couldn't find the solution. "I don't think I can fall in love with the real you, the one inside, I can't fall in love with the terror of water land and chocolate island, but I guess I will when I do turn evil."

"Koopas are not an evil race," She placed a finger against his forehead. "And the spell does not change who you are inside, except you will feel a few knew instincts, bigger appetite for one, better night vision, but in the end you will still be the same."

"I don't want to fight my brother or my friends."

"And no one will make you," Wendy held onto his hand. "I am getting tired of Daddy's usual plan, it is always capture the princess. Whatever happened to conquering new worlds? I want to move out, be my own girl, and conquer my own kingdom. Ludwig will take the throne after Daddy."

"You want to reform?" This meant they both could live in the mushroom kingdom.

"Oh please," she rolled her eyes. "I was meant to be a queen of something, and you know there are some lands out there being dominated by a ruthless tyrant, the people will be grateful if we liberate them."

"I'd be king?" Luigi did like the sound of that idea a little. "I'd be a hero in my own right."

"That is my sexy Koopa." She kissed him on the cheek. "Where would you like to go on our honeymoon?"

"How about Yo'ster isle," It would be easier to break the news to Yoshi first. "Maybe there you could teach me how to be a Koopa?" He needed to learn how to jump with his shell. He also needed to learn how to control is fire.

"Anything my love." She kissed him on the lips, and he kissed her right back.

"I need to borrow the shower now," he brushed his fingers against her shoulder and slid out of bed. "I won't be long."

"I know you wont." She continued to dry off.

There was plenty of shampoo and soap in the bathroom, as well as other towels. Luigi turned on the water and adjusted the knobs until the water felt just right for him. As he lathered up the washcloth he had to think about what he was going to say to Mario. He knew Yo'ster island did not have Internet connection, and he wasn't sure if they had phones. He could try the mail service.

"Dear Mario, I am having a great time on Yo'ster isle. Yoshi misses you and wishes you could visit him soon. I am having a great time with my new wife, Wendy. Yes, Wendy O Koopa, and yes we are married, by the way I have also been transformed into a Koopa as well. I'll talk to you soon when we get back."

No, Luigi shook his head. That wasn't going to work. He was going to find some other way to tell Mario the truth and what happened.

When he stepped out of the shower he grabbed on the towels and started to try him off, careful as to not let the material snag on the spikes on his shell, or on his horns when he dried his hair.

"I never did quite get a good look at my self," Luigi wiped the fog from the material and stared at his reflection. He was certain he became taller, even if it was just by a mere inch. He had also bulked up a bit and when he flexed his arms he saw that it was mostly muscle. It made some sense. Koopas were stronger than humans. His face was now a deep green color and when he angled himself just right he could see that his shell was also the same green shade. He grinned and stared at his sharp teeth. He stuck out his tongue and noticed how pointy it was.

"Nice to see I still have some things." He ran a finger, or should he now think of it as a talon, across his moustache and along his side burns. He tilted his head and noticed the small hole near his left horn. So that is what is ears look like now.

He stared down his chest. He never bragged about the amount of chest hair he once had. There was enough to run his fingers through, still not the same amount as what Mario had, but now it was gone. He ran his fingers down his segmented chest and…where was his-oh there it is. It was just tucked in a sheath and concealed by a flap of skin. No wonder the males didn't have any problem with being naked.

"Wendy?" He stepped outside of the shower, and kept the towel tied around his midsection, at least until little Luigi decides to settled down. He didn't want to give his new wife the wrong impression. "Just let me know when you want to leave."

"For our honeymoon," Wendy smiled.

"Yes," Luigi nodded, the start of a honeymoon and a new life.

* * *

**A/N:** Yeah, after this I knew I had to up the rating to T.

Thanks for all the reviews everyone, next up we will be the Honeymoon.


	6. Honeymoon Derby

**Chapter 6: Honeymoon Derby**

* * *

_The previous evening_

Mario tried not to focus on the pain in his leg as he and Toad lead Peach back to the castle. He had to perform a bit of an aerobatic feat with one of his jumps, one that resulted in pulling a muscle in his left leg. He had received a few other injures as well, several bruises and cuts, those that he usually received when he had to rescue Peach from Bowser.

"I still don't get it," Toad was right behind him. He had also received his fair share of injuries, including a deep cut that may have to receive stitches, but the small retainer refused to see a doctor, not until the princess was returned home. "Why don't you ever just kill him?"

"Killing him is not my main concern," Mario said. "My main concern is always making sure Peach is safe." That was all he cared about, if he managed to kill Bowser along the way then so be it.

"He has helped us out before," Peach added. There were a few tears in her gown, plus the bottom of her dress was dirty, splashed with mud, her hair was out of place, and she was developing a bruise on her right arm. "I would feel bad just to end his life."

"Even after all the times he has tried to kidnap you?" Toad asked.

"We can talk about this more in the morning," Mario said as they neared the castle entrance. "After we had rested, gotten medical attention, some sleep, and something to eat."

The two guardsmen stared at the battle weary trio in shock. "Princess," they both gasped in shock. "What happened to you?"

"I am perfectly fine," Peach lied. "You should both be more concerned about poor Mario and Toad."

"We are sorry," the older of the two guardsmen nodded. "We will send word for a medical team meet you in the front hall at once."

"Thank you," Mario said dryly as he limped past them. He had to wonder why they were hired in the first place. Whenever Bowser kidnaps Peach, they never do anything, just sit back and guard the castle, of course the first time Mario and Luigi arrived and went to rescue Peach the guards took on a more active roll, then again that was how they were turned into bricks, stone and horsehairs.

"Goodness," Toadsworth cried out as soon as the three of them had entered the hallway. "Princess look at you."

"Look at me?" She pointed at Mario and Toad. "Look at them."

"You are absolutely filthy," Toadsworth brushed the end of his cane against one of the mud stains on Peach's dress. "Mario, we are glad you brought her home safe and sound, but hopefully next time could you not allow her to get so dirty?"

"But Toadsworth," Peach protested.

"But nothing," Toadsworth held up a finger. "You are the royal heir to the throne, you have to keep up a respectable appearance."

"I'll make sure I'm not wearing my best dress the next time, Bowser kidnaps me," Peach said dryly.

"Toad!" A familiar voice squeaked as a small pink blur appeared by their side. "Oh no, what happened to your arm?"

"Junior got me good," Toad said as he tried not to flinch from Toadette's touch. "I was fighting him while Bowser took on Mario. The princess also helped."

"You did what?" The old mushroom turned around. His bushy gray moustache twitched. "Is that how you got your dress dirty?"

"Yes," Peach placed her hands on her hips. "I fought. I was the one who went and rescued everyone when Bowser captured Mario and Luigi. I can't always be a damsel in distress. I am no longer a child, and I know you are trying to groom me to be a proper queen someday, but I don't want to be the queen that sits back and lets everyone else do the work. I want to be the queen that is will fight for her land and her people, and right now I can't have you fuss over how clean or unclean my dress is, I need you to make sure Mario and Toad have been treated."

"Mario is also hurt?" Toadette asked. While Peach was arguing with Toadsworth the pink-haired girl was fussing over Toad. "Where does it hurt, Mario?"

"Mostly in my leg," Mario pointed at his injured leg. "I know I pulled something."

"If you pulled a muscle then you should sit down," Toadette said. "You both should sit down until the medical team has arrived. Where are they anyway?"

"They are coming as fast as they can," Toadsworth said. "They do have to gather their supplies you know."

"What about Luigi?" Toadette asked. "Is he hurt?"

"Luigi is with the Yoshis," Mario explained. "He went to Yo'ster Island for a visit, he had no idea this was going to happen." He should write a letter to Yoshi and send it via Parakarry, let Luigi know what was happening, but he would wait until the morning, after he had rested.

* * *

Luigi wasn't in the hotel to hear the argument between Wendy and the staff about the ruined sheets. He had a feeling they wouldn't be welcome back, due to the damage done to the bed, and the wrath of Wendy's temper. He could remember being on the opposite end of her wrath in the past, and that was quite frightening.

"Will that be all?" the mushroom behind the counter asked, snapping Luigi out of his thoughts.

"One pair of trunks, sunglasses, and sun block," Luigi nodded. He still wasn't exactly comfortable with the idea of walking around with nothing on but the shell on his back, and he had no idea how the sun was going to affect his new leathery skin. "And a package of Yoshi cookies." He pointed to one of the packages wrapped in blue.

"Yes sir," the toad quickly rang him up. He seemed to be eager for Luigi to get his stuff and leave, the whole time Luigi was in the store the cashier seemed nervous.

Luigi thanked him. He hoped he didn't cause everyone to run in fear of his new form.

"Argh," Wendy growled as she stormed away from the hotel. "I told them daddy was going to pay them the extra cost, but they wanted the money for it now. I told them where to send the bill."

"Did they still make you pay extra?" Luigi asked. He was surprised he still felt a bit nervous when she was angry, then again who knows how frightening he was going to look when he became angered.

"Yes, and I did give them some extra gold coins, but I told them to send the rest of the bill to daddy."

"Should I offer some money?" he felt very guilty for what happened the night before. After all he was the one who caused the scorch marks to appear on the ceiling.

"No dear," Wendy shook her head. "I made sure everything is settled, let's go on our honeymoon."

* * *

Several Yoshis had come to greet the two of them when they had arrived on Yo'ster isle, and to Luigi's surprise and relief, none of the dinosaurs were afraid of him.

"Welcome to Yo'ster isle," the motley crew of Yoshis greeted upon their arrival. Several left, leaving only two; one was a bright yellow female Yoshi with orange spines and wore a bright pink scarf and pink boots. The other was an elderly tan Yoshi with maroon hackles. One of his eyes was covered in a silver glaze. He did not wear boots but instead wore sandals.

"We love getting visitors," the yellow Yoshi said. "My name is Yolei and this is my grandfather." She pointed to the elderly dinosaur. "There is lots of stuff to do here. We have the mushroom derby races daily, you can watch, and you can participate by riding one of us. We also have a new mini golf game that was set up a few months ago." She spread out her arms. "There is also the beaches, everyone loves the beaches, you can swim, and make sand castles, look for seashells, play volleyball, have barbecues and everything."

"My granddaughter is a bit over excited," The elderly Yoshi said. "Not many speak your language. Those that have left only knew how to welcome people. Mine not real good. Yolei was top student."

"That is okay," Luigi said. "I think we both are looking forward to all the activities on the island." The mini golf game did sound like it would be like a lot of fun, and then there was the idea of Wendy in a bikini. He wasn't sure why that thought had intrigued him.

"Swimming in the ocean," Wendy said in a dreamy voice. "And laying out on the beach with my new husband." She grabbed onto Luigi's arm. "It's our honeymoon."

"Honeymoon?" Yolei clasped her hands together. "That is wonderful, isn't wonderful grandpa?"

"It is lovely," the elderly Yoshi nodded.

"Please forgive us," Luigi said." But the two of us needs to get settled."

"Would you like us to show you where the hotel is?" Yolei asked.

"We are staying with a friend," Wendy said. "Except it is sort of a surprise."

"Yeah," Luigi nodded. The biggest surprise was going to be for Yoshi when he sees the two of them.

* * *

Yoshi's home was really a hallowed out area in the hillside, but it came with a door and there were a few glass windows found amongst the grass. There were several small berry filled bushes in front of the hill and a path made out of pebbles leading up to it.

Luigi felt like his feet had turned to stone when they neared Yoshi's home. He knew he had to eventually go through with it and greet his dinosaur friend, as well as reveal his new form to Mario and the others.

"What is wrong?" Wendy asked.

"What if he is afraid of me?" He recalled how the toad in the shop in Marrymore was frightened of him. The other customers were trying to avoid him as well.

"The one thing I noticed about you and your friends is that you always stick together, no matter what. They will accept you as a Koopa."

"Thanks." He hoped she was right.

"He seems to be looking out the window," she pointed at one of the dark circles in the hillside. A surprised green and white face was staring back at them.

"Yoshi," Luigi waved to his friend.

The face left the window and a second later Yoshi stepped out of his house. "Koopas," the dinosaur frowned. "What are-" He paused for a few seconds. "One smells like a friend." He sniffed the air a few times. "You smell like Luigi, and you have cookies."

"It is me," Luigi smiled, he dare not grin. He didn't want to risk fighting Yoshi with his full set of sharp teeth, and hoped the four fangs that protruded from his upper jaw did not scare him at all. "And I brought you cookies

"You sound and smell like Luigi," Yoshi was confused. "And you brought me cookies, but you also look and smell like a Koopa."

"That's because he is one," Wendy leaned against Luigi's chest.

Luigi nodded. He stared into Yoshi's dark eyes. "I've been turned into a Koopa."

"And we are married," Wendy pressed her lips against Luigi's. He did not fight back; each new kiss from her was more appealing than the last time.

"Why would you want to be a Koopa?" Yoshi scratched the top of his head. "And why didn't you tell me about your wedding?"

"It was a last minute surprise." Wendy said. Surprise, which was a nice way of putting it.

"I didn't want to be a Koopa, but the spell is permanent," he stared at his hands. "And I am beginning to like some of the aspects." He was stronger than he used to be and he no longer had to find a fire flower to use fire. "You don't mind if we spend a few days here?" Luigi asked.

"It's our honeymoon," Wendy added.

"Sure," Yoshi nodded. "Let me help with your things." As he walked past Luigi he whispered. "We should talk."

Yoshi did not have much in the way of furniture. There wasn't even a real bed, just a circular mattress on one part of the room with a single blanket on it for his guests. There was also a desk and chair with a phone.

"What happened," Yoshi asked once Wendy stepped outside to walk around. "How did this happen?"

"Lets see first I was kidnapped, then taken to Bowser's, then I was turned into a Koopa, then I became married to Wendy then-" he stopped counting when he ran out of talons on his hand.

"Why did you agree?"

"I'm not certain," Luigi shrugged. "She had this wonderful scent, maybe Koopas give it off when they are wed, maybe if the male finds it so attractive he can't think then they are meant to be." He looked out the window to watch Wendy sniff a flower. "She does seem to get more attractive by the minute."

"You think she is pretty?" Yoshi asked.

Luigi nodded. "I think it must be the Koopa instincts."

"Uh oh, Luigi," Yoshi pointed outside the window. A blue Yoshi was checking Wendy out. He was wearing a pair of sunglasses and a spiked collar. "That's Boshi."

"I heard of him," Luigi stepped out. "Hey," he pointed at Boshi. "What do you think you are doing with my wife?"

The blue Yoshi stepped away from Wendy and made some strange grunts.

"What did he say?" Luigi asked. He couldn't understand their language and not many could speak his.

Yoshi's nostrils flared for a few seconds. "He said he wants to challenge me to another race, just one on one."

Boshi continued to speak in the Yoshi language for a few more minutes.

"He wants to ask Wendy if she would like to ride on his back for the race." Yoshi frowned while the blue dinosaur smiled.

"I have never ridden a Yoshi before. I think it might be fun," Wendy pat Boshi on top of the head while the blue Yoshi just smiled.

"Do you think it will be okay if she rides him?" Luigi asked. He had no idea what Boshi's true intentions were. Wait a second. Was he actually jealous?

"She will be fine," Yoshi turned to Boshi and spoke in their language. "I told him that I have accepted his challenge. Luigi would you care to ride on my back?"

"Are you sure?" Luigi asked. "I'm a bit heavier than I used to be, with this shell and all."

"I beat Boshi before with Mario on my back, and he is heavier than you. I even won a few races while carrying Wario on my back, and we know how heavy he is."

"Of course," Luigi chuckled at the image of Wario trying to ride Yoshi. You didn't break your back did you?"

"It was nothing that I couldn't handle," Yoshi shrugged.

* * *

The racetrack didn't seem too long to Luigi. He wouldn't cause a lot of strain on the dinosaur's back, not that Yoshi would tell him any different. He climbed on Yoshi's back and settled down in the soft red saddle and held on by grabbing his shoulders.

Wendy seemed to be pretty comfortable in Boshi's saddle, considering it was her first time. She noticed he was looking her way and smiled at him. He smiled back.

"Okay racers," Yolei shouted from the starting line. She repeated the words in the Yoshi language "On your mark, get set and" She dropped the two pink flags she was carrying.

Yoshi launched himself forward and Luigi felt the usual jolt he always did when he rode Yoshi. The wind whistled through his hair, and he could even feel his mustache being pressed against his face from the sheer force. It had been too long since he rode Yoshi for just fun.

It didn't seem long before they crossed the line. He had no idea who came across first.

"That was close," Wendy chuckled.

"And the winner," Yolei jumped up. "Is Yoshi, by a nose."

"Congrats old fried," Luigi rubbed the top of his friend's head. "How about we celebrate with some cookies?"

"Cookies?" Boshi turned towards them and spoke in the Yoshi language.

"He said if he knew we had cookies he would of made a bet," Yoshi translated.

"He seems to really like them if he can say them," Luigi chuckled. "Is it okay if he received a few?"

Yoshi shrugged. "Why not?"

Luigi slid out of the saddle and gave his friend a hug. He didn't think he could express how relieved Yoshi had accepted him for what he was, and no longer feared facing Mario.

"Cookies and then I need to send out a letter," Luigi said. He was already figuring out the best way to let Mario know what had happened, and that would be by showing him in person. He would just write that he had been through some changes.

"Then can we play some golf?" Yoshi asked in a hopeful tone.

"I'm looking forward to it," Luigi grinned.

* * *


	7. InLaws

Chapter 7: In-laws

* * *

Mario grumbled as he limped towards the mailbox. He felt stupid for trying to call the hotel on Yo'ster when he knew full well that Luigi would most likely stay with Yoshi. He wrote a letter for the Parakarry service. Hopefully when Luigi received the letter he wouldn't be too upset and cancel his vacation time.

"Mario," one of the more familiar of the Parakarrys flew towards him. "You have mail." The blue-shelled Koopa held up a handful of letters in his hand.

"Hey," Mario greeted. "Talk about good timing." He held up the letter he had written earlier. "I have a little something for you."

"Thanks," Parakarry said as they exchanged mail. "So this is to Yo'ster? That is interesting. One of the letters for you is from Yo'ster."

"Thanks," Mario thumbed through his mail. He received the usual: Bank statement from First National Fungus, cable bill, and a letter from Luigi.

"Are you feeling all right?" Parakarry asked. "You look like you were limping."

"Just a muscle pull," Mario rubbed his sore leg. "I'll be fine."

The Parakarry nodded. "I hope you heal quick."

"Thank you," Mario waved at his friend while the friendly Koopa flew off. "Ok Weege, what have you been up too?" He opened the letter.

Dear Mario 

_I made it to Yo'ster a little later than expected. Yoshi and his friends are well, already rode him in a Mushroom Derby game, and we won._

_Something else has happened, something that I can't quite tell you in a letter, but when I will see again I will be able to explain._

Love, Weege 

"Something that he can't explain?" Mario scratched the top of his head. He didn't want to dwell on that fact. He wasn't completely honest in his own letter. He didn't mention that he got hurt.

* * *

_Yo'ster Island _

At first Wendy felt like she had to fight to keep up the friendly pretense when she was near that Yoshi. She could never fathom why he was given that name. It was the same as his species, then again Toad was named after his species and her last name was the same as her species. She tried not to let that part get to her, not when she was using every bit of restraint to keep from expressing her disgust at staying at Yoshi's little hut.

She almost called it quaint upon their arrival, but knew it would upset Luigi if she had used such a term, and instead chose cute, and in a way it was cute as well as small. Yoshi had mentioned it was his summer home, and she had to wonder what his real hut would have looked like, or if it would smell as earthy. The bed they used was soft and the material strong enough to not puncture from their spikes. They would sleep on it while Yoshi curled up on a pile of feathers and straw.

The food was also a bit questionable, most of the lizards didn't know how to actually cook, and prefer to eat their food raw. Some did know how to bake breads and cookies and they made shish kabobs out of fruit and bugs as well as various soups. Wendy refused to eat the insects and Luigi only ate one to be polite. Mostly they just dined on the fruits and baked goods and some fish that was caught from the sea.

Wendy did find some fun in the various activities. She was surprised that she did enjoy riding on the back of the Yoshis. She always sought out Boshi to ride. He was different from the others, he had a sense of attitude, it set him apart, made him appear more appealing, and if she understood Yoshi correctly, he thought she was cute.

She also enjoyed playing mini gold, and would try to at least play one game a day with Luigi. She loved watching as he wiggled his hips and shook his tail before he swung his club. Swimming in the ocean was also fun as was just sitting on the beach and having her husband rub lotion on her skin. She also agreed to go on Yolei's little sight seeing tour, despite the fact the yellow dinosaur annoyed her.

"Ready to go home?" Wendy asked as she and Luigi packed up the few things they had brought along on their vacation.

"I am ready," Luigi nodded. "My new home?"

"We don't have to stay in Dark Land forever," she could sense he was nervous about living in the castle and in a way she could understand. "I use to be frightened as well. When I was little I would only stay in certain parts of the castle and I wouldn't think of stepping a foot outside."

"I'm not afraid of Dark Land," Luigi said. "It's your father."

"Don't worry about Daddy," Wendy laughed weakly. She didn't know how her father was going to react.

* * *

Luigi felt a new kind of fear, as the sky grew darker, due to the smoke that rose from several of the volcanoes. It wasn't the usual fear he had felt when He and Mario would storm the fortress in the past. This fear was a new one.

"Don't be scared," Wendy held his hand. "Knowing Daddy, he is moping around in his bedroom.

"That means he is in a bad mood," Luigi swallowed.

"You faced against him when he was in a bad mood before," his new wife reminded him.

"I know," Luigi stared up at the looming castle. "I wasn't part of his family before." He heard about the horror stories from friends when they had to deal with their in-laws.

"Just take a deep breath and relax."

Luigi did take a deep breath and coughed. The air was tangy and peppery. He had noticed before, but now the smell was even more powerful and he was thankful there was no hint of sulfur in the air.

He had always liked Dark Land to Mordor, and the rocky dark landscape was similar to the frightening area in the books. The constant clouds of smoke and strange vapors blocked out most of the light. The only things that seem to grow were thick brambles, piranha plants and mushrooms.

Bowser's Keep was as ominous as Luigi last remembered it. The stones used in the construction were as dark as obsidian, but not near as glossy. Several pipes lined the grounds outside where piranha plants of various species slept. In the past they would have lunged at him with their snapping jaws, but now that he was a Koopa they did not notice. There was a dark moat, encircling the fortress where several cheep cheeps kept jumping. Shyguys, Troopas, Spikes, and Buzzy Beetles patrolled the outside while Paratroopas and Paragoombas flew overhead.

"Mistress Wendy returns," A Shyguy shouted to Sledgebrother across the moat and a few seconds later a drawbridge came down.

"Thank you," Luigi said to the Shyguy as they walked past him and onto the bridge. It felt odd that they were welcoming him. Then again he was with Wendy and he was a Koopa.

* * *

Music filled Luigi's ears as soon as they had entered the main hall, pipe organ music to precise and it did not take a genius to figure out it was Ludwig. He could also hear the sound of a violin being played in the background.

"They are a good match," Luigi said after he had listened to the performance for a few minutes.

"Yes they do." Wendy nodded. "I wonder where everyone is."

Her question was followed by the grunts and groans. Roy entered the hall with a defeated expression his face and a tennis racket in one of his hands. He was not alone.

"Are you sure you are not injured?" A female Koopa followed behind Roy, also carrying a tennis racket. She was one of the most unique looking Koopas, Luigi had ever seen. Her skin was a pale green color, mottled with darker green spots. Her head was pale blue, matching the small dress that she wore. Her shell was black and devoid of spikes. It resembled leather. Instead of horns on her head she had what appeared to be fins that framed her white hair that was gathered in a braid. Her feet were long and flat, resembling the flippers of a sea turtle.

"I just need a few minutes in a nice hot tub," Roy massaged the back of his neck. "Hey, the newlyweds are back."

"Oh," the female Koopa turned to them. "Welcome back Wendy, and congratulations."

"Thank you," Wendy embraced Luigi. "Tethys this is Luigi, Luigi this is Tethys."

"Hello," Luigi held out his hand.

"Hello," Tethys took his hand. There was translucent webbing between her fingers.

"Tethys is a Prairnet," Wendy explained. "And a princess of the Prairnet kingdom."

"Forgive me," Luigi gave the princess a courteous bow.

"So he is one of the polite ones," Tethys said in a slight annoyed tone.

"Do you know where everyone is?" Wendy asked.

"Morty, Larry and Junior are in Larry's room," Roy said. "I heard they were playing some video games. Iggy is in his lab, you can hear where Ludwig and Dru are, and Lemmy is in his room, chatting with his girlfriend."

"Where is our father?" Wendy grabbed onto Luigi's hand. She must have sensed how nervous he was feeling.

"On the throne," Roy pointed to up with his racket. "I gotta warn ya. He is in a pretty bad mood. We mentioned how you got hitched already-"

"What?" Wendy cut him off with her screech. "What did you say to him?"

"I just said you got married. I didn't mention to who, or the fact Luigi got better looking, or anything like that."

"You think he got better looking?" Tethys tickled Roy under his chin. "Do I have to worry about becoming jealous?"

"Naw, you are the only one for me, babe," Roy pulled her close and winced. "Sorry."

"Lets get you to that hot tub," Tethys took him by the hand. "I guess we will see you at dinner."

"That is if Luigi survives," Roy said as the two of them turned down a different hall.

"Roy," Wendy hissed. "Ignore him."

* * *

Luigi couldn't remember the last time he was in the throne room of Bowser's castle, and if he was he never took the time to appreciate the room. Long thick red carpets clothed the floor. Paintings and tapestries decorated the walls and large chandeliers with both candles and crystal prisms hung from the ceiling.

Bowser himself was sprawled across large oak throne at the end of the hall, his thick legs hung over one side while his head rested on the other arm. His arms were across his chest and stomach. He was staring at the ceiling and only seemed to be half listening to what Kamek had to say.

Kamek was pacing around in front of the throne, flipping through several notes. Several Goombas surrounded him.

Kammy stood in the middle of the room, flanked by Troopas. She was the only one who noticed Luigi and Wendy. "There he is." She pointed at Luigi. "Get him."

"What?" Luigi held up his hands in defense.

"It is not what you think," Wendy said.

She was right. The turtle like soldiers were carrying tape measures, pens and notepads. They surrounded Luigi and wrapped the tape around his middle, taking in both his shell, and another measurement where they slid the tape between his back and his shell, followed by his height, width of his legs, his arms.

"Hold your arms apart," One Troopa instructed.

"Okay," Luigi held up his arms and looked to Wendy for an explanation.

"They are going to make you some new clothes," Wendy explained. "I have a feeling you would like a new shirt and some new overalls."

"Thanks guys," Luigi smiled at the sewing team as they finished taking his measurements and wrote things down.

"We already made you this," one Troopa held up a hat. It was the same light shade of green as Luigi's old hat, and included the L on a white circle in the middle. There were also two holes that were made, perfect for Luigi's horns.

"Thanks again," Luigi placed the new hat on his head.

"So my daughter has returned," Bowser said. He was no longer sprawled across his throne, instead he was seated up and both he and Kamek were staring at the couple.

"Hello Daddy," Wendy greeted before she skipped up to her father. "How are you today?"

"Lousy," Bowser growled. "Mario got the best of me again, and you and most of your brothers were not here to help."

"It was my wedding day, Daddy," Wendy said. "And even if we where here, Mario would have defeated us."

Luigi suppressed a chuckle. She was right Mario would have defeated everyone; well he wouldn't be by himself. Luigi would have joined his brother in the rescue, well he would have if wasn't on his little vacation. It is a bit of an odd twist that instead of fighting against Wendy he was now married to her.

"I see," Bowser ran a head through his mane of red hair. "Couldn't have waited to have your own father walk you down the isle?"

"It was a quick wedding," Wendy said. "And I promise to have another one, a larger one, and you will be there to walk me down the aisle."

Another wedding? Luigi raised an eyebrow. Well he wouldn't mind having another one if it meant that his friends would attend. Mario would be the best man of course, and Toad and Gadd would be some of the groomsmen and Peach and Daisy…how was Daisy going to react? She was a good friend. He enjoyed spending time with him, but they hadn't moved on to the next level yet and he wasn't exactly sure how she saw him.

"This is my new son in-law?" Bowser studied Luigi. "There is something familiar about this Koopa. Is he a prince?"

"No," Luigi coughed into his hand. "I'm not a prince. I'm a plumber."

"A plumber?" Bowser slid off his throne and made his way to Luigi. "You're a plumber, you sound like that green guy, you even smell like him, except better. You even have the same moustache and that hat. If I didn't know better I would say that you were him, if he were transformed…into a…Koopa." His eyes widened. "Please tell me you aren't the green guy. You are not Mario's brother."

"Luigi," he tried to keep from glaring. Why couldn't Bowser ever remember his name?

"You are him," Bowser's voice grew thin. "And you married my daughter?"

"Yes we have," Wendy embraced Luigi. "He is now Luigi Koopa."

"I see," Bowser's voice turned into a squeak. He took a deep breath and walked outside the room.

"He took it better than I thought," Luigi said. He thought Bowser was going to roar at him and send his fire breath after him, and there was no telling what he was going to do with his claws

"No he didn't," Kamek was trying to step away from them, but was held fast by Kammy.

"WENDY OLIVIA KOOPA," Bowser stepped back in. His eyes were fierce, hands held in fists and wisps of smoke were trailing out of his mouth. "How could you? He's the enemy remember."

"Not anymore," Wendy stood in front of Luigi and crossed her arms. "He is now my husband."

"He is Mario's brother," Bowser pointed at Luigi. "Did you forget how many times he fought against us?"

"We are a couple now," Wendy kissed Luigi's cheek. "And nothing you are going to say is going to change this."

"My only daughter," Bowser grabbed his hair. "Married to a hu-that's right. He isn't human anymore."

"That's right," Luigi puffed up his chest. "I'm a Koopa." He waved his claws at Bowser and growled, and jumped back immediately after. Did he actually make that sound?

"He's one of us now," Bowser asked. He tilted his head to the side while he studied Luigi. "He is one of us?" A smile broke out on his snout, a smile that brought fear to Luigi's heart "Does your brother know?"

"Not yet," Luigi shook his head. That was the first thing he was going to do the next day.

"He's going to be devastated when he finds out his brother is a reptile," Bowser laughed again. "Even more when he finds out little Luigi switched sides. I'd pay to see the look on his face."

"Actually I-" He was about to tell his father in-law that he hadn't switched sides at all, but Wendy held up her hand.

"Let him think what he wants for know," she whispered.

"Okay," Luigi shrugged. He was going to let Bowser know the truth the next time the Koopa King decides to overtake the Mushroom kingdom, hopefully that won't be for a while.

"The Green Thunder is now part of the Koopa Troop," Bowser said in a smug tone. "He can begin his training tomorrow, but there are few things he needs to do first."

"Like what?" Luigi raised an eyebrow.

"One of the toilets on the second floor is backed up," Bowser listed. "The shower head in Iggy's bathroom is leaking. The third floor bathtub is clogged. There is also something wrong with the sink in Morton's bathroom, and there are a few leaky pipes in the basement."

"Daddy," Wendy rolled her eyes.

"He can wait till after dinner for the basement pipes," Bowser said.

"No problem," Luigi chuckled. No matter what species he was, he was still a plumber. "I'm just going to need some tools."

* * *


	8. Revelation

**Chapter 8: Revelation**

Luigi went to bed, not long after he had finished fixing the pipes in the basement and dungeon. He was exhausted when he returned to the room he shared with Wendy, almost too tired to notice the surprise that was waiting for him. There was a brand new light green shirt that was neatly folded up, along with a pair of blue overalls. There were also a few black leather bands with spikes, five of them to be exact, one to wear as a collar, two to wear on his upper arms, and the last two to wear on his wrists.

He didn't think to set the alarm to wake up early the next morning. It just felt natural to him. He was an early riser and would be awake at seven, sometimes even earlier than that.

He didn't want to wake Wendy. She had crawled in few minutes after him and slept with her arm across his chest. If she was still tired then he was going to let her continue to sleep. He gave her a small kiss on the cheek before he slipped out of bed. He had to admire the material. It was similar to memory foam he had heard about, comfortable for him to rest on, and strong enough to not be damaged by his spikes. It was even stronger than the bed he slept on at Yoshi's.

The table in the dining hall was set when Luigi arrived. He was going to see if there was something like a bagel and he would have brewed himself some fresh coffee, but he can smell the coffee had already been made. He could also smell sausage patties, eggs, orange slices and pancakes. He could also smell coffee with a distinct hint of cinnamon in it.

Luigi wasn't surprised the food was already cooked and set out for him. What did surprise him was the sight of Larry seated at the table, already halfway finished with his breakfast.

"Good morning," Luigi greeted.

"Morning," Larry said around a mouthful of food.

"Do you usually wake up this early?" Luigi took a seat at the table.

"Nope," Larry wiped his mouth and took a long drink from his glass.

"You have something special planned for today?" He wondered if it was going to be a repeat from last night. The food was delicious and there was plenty to go around.

Wendy wasn't kidding about having a bigger appetite. He ate even more than Mario usually did. The lack of conversation made him nervous. Things started with Tethys talking about her family, Iggy brought up his latest invention he was working on, some kind of weapon, until Larry hushed him. A few minutes later Bowser had toasted to the newly wed couple and asked what kind of training Luigi wanted to do. Luigi was honest when he brought up jumping and his fire breath, things were quiet afterwards, until Roy, Morton, Larry, Lemmy, and Junior decided to have a belching contest.

"How many pancakes would you like, Master Luigi?" A Shyguy asked him.

"I think I will start out with four," Luigi was startled from his thoughts of the previous evening. "Make that four pancakes and four sausages."

"As you wish, Master Luigi," the Shyguy placed four of the cakes on Luigi's plate. Another Shyguy placed the sausages, while a third spooned the scrambled eggs and a fourth added the orange slices.

"You'll get used to it," Larry said as he placed the last bite of food into his mouth. "Then when you go on a real adventure you grow to appreciate and respect all the work these guys do for you."

"A real adventure?" Luigi asked. The closest thing to an actual adventure he had seen Larry and his siblings do was hold down the different forts for Bowser.

"Master Luigi?" A blue shy guy tapped him on the shoulder. "What would you like on your pancakes?"

"Butter and syrup," Luigi said. His eyes widened when the Shyguy raised the lid of the tray and exposed several small bottles, and tubs. "Maple syrup." He added.

"How much butter and syrup?"

"I'll get it," Luigi held up his hands and placed the butter on the cakes and poured a little of the maple syrup on top before he handed it back to the Shyguy.

"We got everything and anything you need to put on pancakes and waffles," Larry said. "Maple syrup, chocolate syrup, blueberry syrup, all kinds of syrups, honey, cinnamon, peanut butter, jellies, whip cream, you name it."

"Wow," Luigi blinked and turned to see a green Shyguy was now standing next to him. "Yes?"

"What would you like on your eggs?"

"Mama-mia," Luigi gasped, earning a chuckle from Larry. "Pepper and ketchup will be fine, and I'll do it." He didn't remember the various condiments from the night before, except for the pepper grinder.

"See what I mean?" Larry slid his chair back and stood up.

"I see," Luigi nodded. "Is one going to come around with a beverage cart, cause all I would like is a cup of coffee."

"That will be easy," Larry cupped his snout. "Luigi wants coffee." He shouted at the top of his lungs. "See there is nothing to it."

"Larry," Kammy entered the dining hall. "The Goombas have your things prepared. Are you certain you wish to go?"

"It is not about choice," Larry told her. He took a deep breath. "It is something I have to do."

"Something you feel like you have to do," Kammy pulled at the collar of Larry's shirt, exposing the scar that was across his shoulder. "You might not be lucky this time."

"I'm older now," Larry batted away her fingers. "Iggy made me some new toys, and I do have to. You weren't there the last time. You didn't see there faces, they fear that was in their eyes and the gratitude that came after when the threat was over." His eyes sparkled with the moisture that had gathered. "You didn't meet her. You didn't know her. She is the one I have to do this for."

"Let me come with you."

"I was able to fight by myself and I was only thirteen the last time."

"When a threat returns they are usually stronger than before. Let me come with you."

"No," Larry stepped away from her.

"I will send one of my students to go with you then." She tapped the end of her jagged and worn fingernails against her chin. "Lets see, who should I send?" She pursed the tip of her beak while her forehead wrinkled. "I'll send Kamron. He's one of my best students in the classroom, but he is only book smart, some outside learning would be good for him."

"Fine," Larry sighed in defeat. "Just don't tell my father."

"Try to be safe," Kammy pulled the second youngest Koopaling into an embrace.

"Okay," Larry hugged her back. "I have to go, before anyone wakes up."

Luigi had watched the exchange out of curiosity. He wondeedr what was so important for Larry to leave without him telling anyone. He also wondered how the young Koopa received such a scar.

"I worry about them all," Kammy said softly. "They may not appreciate it, but I am always watching out for them."

Luigi wanted to say something, but his coffee had just arrived and he held up two talons to indicate he just wanted two spoons of sugar. He had a feeling Kammy wasn't finished talking.

"I would have worried about you and your brother if things went a little different in the past."

"What?" Luigi had no idea what she was talking about.

"Oh never mind," Kammy removed his hat and handed it to him. "Remember not to wear your hat when you eat."

"Sorry."

"And make sure you clean your plate."

"Yes ma'am," Luigi took a large bite out of his stack of pancakes.

* * *

Returning to his house was even more nerve racking for Luigi than heading towards Dark Land. He kept telling himself it was stupid, being afraid of his own brother like that. Mario wasn't going to disown him because he was magically transformed. Mario wasn't going to like what had happened to him, nor was he not going to like the fact that Luigi got married to Wendy Koopa.

Luigi had nearly forgotten how nervous the shopkeeper in Marrymore was when he was in there. He hadn't thought about how the Toads reactions would be when emerged in the middle of town. Several toads just stared at him as he walked by. A few whispered, wondering if he was a real Koopa, or just wearing a well designed costume.

"Go away Koopa," a toad child, no older than six was standing in the middle of his sand box. "Go away," he scooped up a handful of sand and threw towards Luigi's direction. "Go away."

Luigi shielded his eyes, even though most of the sand was scattered by the wind to actually do any damage to him.

"Trevor," a portly female toad ran out of her house and grabbed the boy. "What did you do?" Her eyes narrowed at Luigi.

"I didn't do anything," Luigi lowered his arms.

"Why are you here?"

"I live here," well he used to live here. "My brother still lives here."

"Lying Koopa," she inched back to her house while holding her son tight to her chest. She never removed her eyes from Luigi. "Your not supposed to be here."

Luigi didn't wait for the door to slam before he increased his speed. He wanted to get away from the stares, the whispers, and the finger pointing. He wanted to get back to his and Mario's house.

He wasn't the only one to pay Mario a visit. Toad and Toadette were approaching the house from the opposite end of the street.

"A Koopa," Toadette squealed as she pointed at Luigi.

"And he's dressed like Luigi," Toad blinked his beady eyes and tilted his head. "I have never seen this one before."

"Do you think he is after Mario?" Toadette asked.

"Guys it's me," Luigi held up his hands.

"He sounds like Luigi," the girl said.

"I am Luigi," he smiled. Having the strangers fear was bad enough, seeing the look of fear in the eyes of his friends, was a stab. "Please don't be afraid."

"What is going on?" Mario stepped outside of his house. He was still in his pajamas and he was rubbing his eyes. He liked to sleep late, but this was ridiculous.

"We are not sure," Toad looked ill.

"Mario, it's me," Luigi turned to his brother.

"Welcome back Weege," Mario yawned. He blinked his eyes twice. "Weege?"

"Yes?" Luigi twitched his tail.

"What the hell?" Mario stood there, mouth agape and pointing at him. He almost looked like that stupid gorilla that kidnapped his ex-girlfriend.

"Its me, your brother." Luigi was shaking.

"What is this?" Mario walked, no he limped towards him.

"Mario don't." Toadette jumped in between them. "Your leg."

"What happened?" Luigi asked. "Did you hurt yourself when you fought Bowser. You didn't mention this in your letter."

"No," Mario looked as ill as Toad. "You didn't mention this in your letter either."

"I said I went through some changes," Luigi crossed his arms. "And injured leg or not, you were still asleep at this hour?"

"I was eating breakfast," Mario frowned. He locked his eyes with Luigi's. "Luigi?"

"Yes, Mario?"

"Who did this to you?"

"It is a bit of a long story," Luigi glanced over to their two toad friends. Toad was just staring at them with his mouth hanging open and Toadette had a few tears leaking out of the corners of her eyes. "Maybe it would be best if I told it inside."

* * *

"After I finished fixing the pipes I went to bed," Luigi stared into his glass of Fresh Juice. He explained what had happened while the others had listened on.

"Wow," Toadette breathed before she stared at the kitchen table.

"You are married to the enemy," Toad repeated. "And they think you are also the enemy, well the enemy to us."

"You are married," Mario's eyes and widened to double their size when Luigi had informed him of what had happened. "You are married?"

"Yes."

"To Wendy Koopa," Mario continued.

"I think we have established this," Luigi said.

"Did you say I do?" Toad asked.

"Yes. I said I do. She hand fed me a calzone and we had sex, there are you satisfied."

"No," Toadette closed her eyes. "I wish you hadn't said the last part."

"Were you drugged?" Mario asked. "Cause that is the only thing that would explain why you agreed to marry her."

"I didn't have anything to eat or drink before, and she didn't give me any injections of anything. She did have this nice scent to her," Luigi smiled.

"You sound like you love her," Toadette said. "Do you?"

"I'm not sure," Luigi buried his face with his hands. "I know she is in love with me."

"What about Daisy?"

"Daisy is a good friend," Luigi sighed. "I still am not certain if there is anything. I like her, but I don't know if I am in love with her." He placed his head on the counter. "I don't want to hurt her, and I don't want to hurt Wendy."

"Cause you know she is going to flip out on you." Toad said

"That's not it," Toadette shook her head. "Luigi cares for her."

"You are kidding," Toad winced.

"She isn't," Luigi glared at him. "I do care."

"What are you going to do?" Mario asked. "You are not going back to Dark Land are you?"

"Bowser still thinks I betrayed you," Luigi took a sip from his glass. "And I still going to train, but first I need to see Dr. Gadd."

* * *

A/N, ah where is Larry heading? Super Paper Mario has a hint to where.


	9. A Visit to Proff Gadd

**Chapter 9. A Visit to Proff. Gadd**

* * *

Luigi waited in the hallway along with Toad and Toadette while Mario showered and got dressed. He didn't want to be rude, but he had to wonder if Mario bathed in the past few days. There was a small foul odor that lingered around his brother. The two toads on the other hand had a sweet fragrance.

"How do you hear?" Toad asked after a minute of awkward silence.

"Toad," Toadette addressed the retainer in a sharp tone.

"Sorry," Toad shrugged. "I'm just curious." He pointed at his own minuscule ears. "We got these and you don't have any."

Luigi chuckled. "I was curious myself." He pointed to his head. "Like most reptiles I have ear holes."

"Are you warm-blooded or cold-blooded?" Toad asked another question.

"I'm not certain," Luigi shrugged. "I never noticed a change in temps. I mean I notice when it is sunny and warm, cool and dreary, and here with the ac running, but nothing different than before."

"Maybe they are warm-blooded," Toadette suggested. "Since they breath fire."

"We could be," Luigi approached the phone. "Gadd would know. He's a brilliant man."

"I thought he only knew stuff about ghosts," Toad said. "Who ya calling?"

"Wendy," Luigi dialed the number to the castle. "I need to let her know where I'm going."

"Wow, he's already whipped," Toad said and received a smack in the side of the head from Toadette.

"Greetings, you have reached the home of the future king," a child's voice greeted. "And the current king Bowser."

"Hello Junior," Luigi greeted. Wendy wasn't wrong when she said that Junior thought he was going to inherit the throne. "Where is Wendy?"

"Putting on make up," Junior responded in a snide tone. "You know that is going to take hours to make her look somewhat pretty." He laughed.

Luigi fought back the urge to growl. "I think your sister is beautiful," he ignored the gasp from Toad. "Now I would like to talk to her please."

"All right, all right," the other end became quite for several minutes. "She is on her-" muffled sounds of a minor scuffle were heard.

"Luigi?" Wendy greeted.

"Hello dear," Luigi greeted. "Sorry about leaving early."

"You don't have to apologize to me. Daddy is curious about where you are, but then again Larry is also missing."

"Wendy, we are about to see Gadd. We are going to see if he can change me back to a human, please don't be upset, even if he does succeed I want you to know I wont leave you."

"The spell is permanent," Wendy's voice grew soft.

"We haven't tried the science angle," Luigi swallowed. "I will return to you, I promise, even if you don't want me as a human."

"You were a cute human, actually a handsome human, but you are a sexy Koopa."

"Thank you," he felt himself blush. "I'll see you at the castle."

"Actually we'll meet you there. Bye my sweet husband." She hung up.

"What was that about?" Mario asked.

Luigi spun around. "How long have you been here?"

"For a few minutes," Mario was dressed in his usual attire of red shirt, overalls, white gloves, hat and shoes. His hair was still damp. He smelled clean, but there was a faint hint of that foul odor from before.

"Wendy said she was going to meet us at Gadd's," Luigi said. He left out the part where Wendy had said we.

"Wait," Mario held up his hands. "She is going to meet us there?"

"That is what I said," Luigi placed his hands on his hips. "She is not going to try anything."

* * *

The walk through the Boo forest was peaceful. There were several toads that watched the four of them in awe, but none tried to give Luigi a hard time. They respected Mario too much and must have heard how he had worked with friendly Troopas, Goombas, Bom-ombs, ghosts, and Cheap Cheaps in the past.

"Does Wendy know the way?" Toadette asked as they neared the mansion.

"I'm sure she-" Luigi was cut off by the sound of a helicopter.

They all looked up to see what was the shape of Bowser's clown car, except it was silver, its face resembled the frightening mug of a Boo and it had the whirling blades of a helicopter connected to a pole in the back and what looked like two short legs connected to two long feet on the bottom. The strange vehicle landed on the ground in front of the mansion.

"Oh man, oh man, oh man," Iggy Koopa jumped out of the helicopter. He was wearing his usual white lab coat and nothing else. "Okay, Iggy. Don't panic." He examined his reflection in the side of his helicopter. "Okay glasses are clean," he ran his hand through his colorful striped hair. "Hair is in place." He breathed onto his hand and sniffed it. "Breath is still good, okay I look good enough to meet him."

"Excuse him," Wendy stepped out. "He is experience a high case of geeker joy." She adjusted the large speckled bow on her head. "Hello Luigi."

"Wendy," Luigi hugged his wife. He closed his eyes and inhaled her sweet scent. "Sorry I didn't tell you this last night."

"You were exhausted," she kissed him and turned to Mario. "Hello Mario, brother."

"Hello Wendy," Mario swallowed. "And Iggy."

"You know, they are kind of cute together," Toadette smiled.

"Cute?" Toad asked.

"I can't be the one to knock," Iggy stood in front of the door with shaky hands. "I just can't. I still have to think of what to say when I meet him."

"Oh for the love of," Wendy rolled her eyes. "Luigi this was supposed to be your home or originally, you should be the one to knock."

"Or ring the door bell," Luigi pressed a talon against the button.

"You used to live here?" Iggy gasped. "Here at the home of one Professor Elvin Gadd? One of the greatest minds ever known and you used to live with him?"

"Actually I gave it to him," Luigi explained. "It was a little bit to big for just me, and still too roomy for both me and Mario."

"Not to mention the place is kinda spooky," Toad added. He was staring at the entrance of the mansion from behind Mario. "Even with the ghosts in the portraits."

The door opened and a rail thin ghost with a balding head greeted them. "Hello…" His eyes widened at the sight of Luigi and the Koopas. He screamed and floated back.

"Don't be afraid Shivers," Luigi said in a soothing voice. "It's me, Luigi."

"You're a Koopa," Shivers pointed at Luigi.

"Where is Gadd?" Mario stepped in between them.

"He's watching his cartoons," Shivers frowned at Mario. "You still haven't learned any matters."

"Excuse me?" Mario asked.

"He has a ghost for a servant," Iggy gasped. "He is one of the most amazing humans ever."

"I apologize for my brother's rudeness," Luigi said. "Can you please take us to see him?"

"Yes," Shivers nodded. "Right this way."

He led them down the long halls, and past several other portraits. Toadette, Wendy, and Iggy paused to read the inscription under each painting.

"No," Wendy shook her head when she stopped in front of Sue Pea's portrait. "She was only seven?"

"It is very tragic," Shivers nodded. He placed his translucent hands over his chest. "Even though my heart no longer beats it still hurts for her."

"She went to sleep and died?" Wendy's eyes teared up.

"That's awful," Toadette nodded. "That poor little girl."

Wendy wiped the corner of her eye. "How? I can understand if she was a very old woman, but she was just a child."

"It may have been sleep apnea," Iggy shrugged.

"The boys were even younger," Shivers added.

"Don't forget Chauncey." Luigi added. How could anyone forget that brat? It was bad enough that he threw his toys at Luigi, but he also shrank Luigi down. He was never going to forget looking up into the glowing yellow of eyes of the giant baby.

"Chauncey was born that way," Shivers said.

"How can someone be born a ghost?" Toad asked.

"Perhaps their mother was expecting when-" Mario clamped his hand over Iggys mouth before the Koopa genius could finish.

"You might not want to upset the ladies even further," Shivers said. "Come along now, it is not much further."

Shivers lead them to a living room, filled with plump couches and armchairs, and end tables carved out of fine oak. A large screen was displaying images of bright colored robots fighting against what appeared to be a large green pile of ooze.

"Professor," Shivers floated in front of the couch. "You have visitors."

"Visitors?" The professor exclaimed. "Oh good, I love to see visitors." There was the sound of someone vacating the sofa and a few seconds later a short elderly man, wearing thick glasses and had a swirl shaped wisp of white hair on the top of his head. "Oh it you Mr. Impulsive plumber." Gadd said once he placed his glasses back on his face

"Hello Gadd," Mario greeted.

"Where is your brother?"

"I'm right here," Luigi smiled at his friend.

"Oh," Gadd craned his head back. "Luigi?" He removed his glasses and cleaned them before he put them back on. "My goodness, lad, what have you gotten yourself into? What is a mutagenic serum that chemically altered your DNA into a Koopa, or was it an electronic ray that transmogrified your body into a different species."

"Actually it was magic," Luigi said.

"Ah magic," Gadd frowned as he rubbed the top of his head. "I keep forgetting sometimes it is simple potion or a wave of the wand, oh yes magic, makes things easier even when some of us go through years of research, spent hours toiling away-"

"To get the electrodes set up right, make sure all the calculations are accurate," Iggy continued. "Going through trial and error countless of times to see a project work."

"Ah someone who understands," Gadd smiled at him. "Are you also a scientist?"

"Yes," Iggy's voice grew weak as he held out his hand. "M-m-my N-n-nammme isss Ig-g-ggy."

"Nice to meet you Iggy," Gadd shook his hand. "I see we wear the same prescription."

"We have the same prescription," Iggy repeated and turned to Wendy. "Did you hear that? We have the same prescription."

"I heard," Wendy rolled her eyes. "Let me apologize for my brother. He is a bit of a fan of yours."

"A bit of a fan?" Iggy blinked. "Does a bit of a fan read all twelve of the books written by Gadd at least twenty times, clip every article in every newspaper, and magazine that is written by him, record every television appearance, does that sound like a bit of a fan."

"It sounds almost like a stalker," Toad whispered to Toadette.

"I have a fan," Gadd brushed his elbow against Mario's arm. "You see that dear boy? I have a fan."

"I saw," Mario grumbled, he was clearly not impressed. "Do you have any of that mutant syrup or transform ray, that might change my brother back into a human?"

"No I haven't," Gadd shook his head. "But I'll see what I can do, first you have to come with me to my examination room."

* * *

The examination room was similar to most examination rooms Luigi had been in when he went to his doctor, the walls were painted a pail green. There were cold sterile metal tables and counters and a leather bed in the center. Instead of pamphlets of different medicine and supplement names, and information various virus that have been mention in the recent news, there was a corkboard, with several news articles pinned in to it.

Wendy walked over to it. She seemed to be drawn to one article. "Dr Phillip refuses to leave hospital, feels the cure is just around the corner."

"Oh that was tragic," Gadd's face became crestfallen. "He was willing to do everything for his little girl. Sank his entire savings into making sure one section of the hospital had enough power and supplies."

"What happened to his daughter?" Wendy continued to read the article. "It doesn't say."

Gadd shrugged. "There are some to say she was cured, some said she died. He was a brilliant man, that Dr Phillip. I met him a few times when his daughter was still healthy. She was one of the sweetest little things, always offering to share her little bag of jellybeans with everyone. I gave her a lollipop in return. I wish I did know what really happened to her."

"Did you not receive any news?" Toadette asked. She was also reading the article.

"Nothing came through, nothing but rumors and stories, along with other stories, things nightmares are made of, even more frightening than ghosts."

"Even more frightening than King Boo?" Luigi asked.

The elderly man nodded. "One story that was proven true was the fate of my old friend." He placed a hand on his chest. "He was murdered by a colleague."

"I think that is enough on that subject," Mario said. "What about my brother?"

The professor nodded. "You don't need to hop on that bed. I just need to take a blood sample from you, Luigi." He rummaged through one of the drawers and pulled out a syringe.

"Okay," Luigi closed his eyes. He felt a cool damp cloth rub on his arm.

"Just try not to think about it," Gadd said.

"I won't," he didn't cringe, not even when he felt the prick of the needle in his arm.

"Okay, that wasn't so bad." Gadd placed the needle aside. "Now I just need one from Mario."

"Wait," Mario shook his head. "I am not going to get poked by a needle."

"I need your blood, help with the transformation process." He removed a new needle from its plastic seal.

"Why not take some of yours?" Mario asked. "If you need blood from a human."

"Well it would help if it I had yours since you are his brother, and his twin."

"Are you absolutely certain?" Mario was stepping away towards the door, only to find out both Toad and Toadette blocked it.

"Are you afraid of needles, Mario?" Toadette asked.

"Yes he is," Luigi said.

"No," Mario frowned. "I just don't like em."

"I see," Gadd nodded. "I won't take a sample now, but if I do need it I will give you a call.

* * *

_Tempo Town_

Larry felt his heart pounding. He held his salt-rock rocket launcher to his chest with sweaty hands. The Corpsfinder 3000 was beeping madly and there was no surprise with the five zombies that surrounded both him and Kamron.

"Gotcha," the young Magikoopa waved his wand, creating the bright flash that froze all of the zombies in place. "I can't keep up this flare forever."

"I'm on it," Larry aimed his launder at the first one and fired. The rocket made out of salt rock struck the frozen corpse in the head, causing the figure to fall apart into various limbs, chunks of flesh, bone splinters, worms and black goo. Larry fired at two more before the light started to weaken.

"Hurry," Kamron gasped. His curl of orange hair was stuck to his forehead from sweat.

"I got it," Larry aimed at the fourth zombie and pulled the trigger. The click made him pause. "Oh hell no. Don't jam on me now."

The flare faded, leaving a gasping Kamron and two mobile zombies. Larry struggled with his weapon, he wasn't aware someone was behind him until they were close enough to smell their scent, and he knew that was too close for comfort.

* * *

**A/N**: Ack, Cliffhanger, sorry about that folks.


	10. Silhouette and Food

Chapter 10: Silhouette and Food

* * *

"Throw something at it," Larry cried as he turned around to see what was behind him.

"Get down," a cold voice hissed out, right before whoever, or whatever it was vaulted over Larry's head, using his shoulders as a spring board and sending him sprawling towards the spongy earth.

"Who is this?" Kamron called out.

"I don't know," Larry stood back up in time to see a figure dressed in black throw a vial of water at one of the zombies. "They are going to need more than Pure water, if they want to last out here." He adjusted his gun until he heard it cock. "Back in action." He aimed the launcher at the stunned corpse and fired straight at its head.

The fifth one had already turned into a pile of dismembered parts, right next to the newcomer.

"Good shot," the girl, yes the girl said. The human was holding onto a still smoking double barrel shot gun and wiped her hand across her forehead. "I don't think I have ever seen you guys around here, but then again I'm new to this town myself."

"Who is this?" Kamron had just placed his wand back into the pocket lining his robe.

"Silhouette Mcgee," the girl answered. Larry was not that surprised or impressed by her name. He figured if someone were going to dress like she was, then she would have a name like shadow or shady. Her outfit was completely black, shirt with sleeves that ended at the elbows, jeans, plain boots with no flashy accessories. The only odd part of her out fit was the cloak she wore.

"Psst, Larry," Kamron tapped on his shoulder. "She has a tail." He pointed at Silhouette's backside and sure enough there was a long black tail twitching back and forth.

"So who are you guys?" Silhoutte asked. Her eyes were an odd shade of green and her canines were long and pointed, and what Larry had mistaken for an odd hair accessories were her ears, they were pointed and covered in fur.

"I'm Larry," he pointed at Kamron. "This is Kamron."

"You are not the Larry Koopa are you?" She raised her eyebrows.

"That would be me," Larry said.

"I've played the game, so it is true that you fought against zombies while dating several gals?"

"Yeah," Larry nodded. "Except for the dating part. I think they just threw that in just to get the chicks interested, no offense." There was only one girl he remembered that was worth dating.

"They didn't need to add the dating sim to get those like me interested," Silhouette smirked. "So ya came back to Tempo Town, must have heard about the new dead man party going on."

"Exactly," Larry nodded. "Is that why you are here?"

"Actually I was trailing someone else," she looked up at the cloudy sky when a thunderclap was heard. "We better get inside before it rains."

* * *

Dark Land

Luigi was somewhat nervous when it came to flying in Iggy's helicopter, but he said nothing during the flight and held onto Wendy's hand while Iggy jabbered on.

"And he said that I can come over and help," Iggy said as he brought the copter to a wide area that was perfect for landing. "In fact after I drop you two off I'm going to go back."

"Are you serious?" Wendy asked. "He is technically the enemy."

"Enemy, friend, does it matter," Iggy paused to take in a deep breath. "Even if it is a person you do not like, even if it is your bitter rival, your personal frenemy, or even your deadliest enemy, if they have achieved an amazing skill you will want to admire them for it, respect them, even learn from them."

"Where did you read that quote?" Luigi was certain he read that quote, or something similar in a quote book.

"No where," Iggy pulled back one of the levers and the two feet of the copter came to a land on the ground with a small shake. "It just came to my head."

"Have I ever told you that you were odd?" Wendy asked.

"All the time," Iggy opened the doors. "If dad asks where I am, tell him I'm testing my ride."

"I'll be sure to let him know," Wendy said as she stepped out.

"Thanks for the ride," Luigi said after he slid out and closed the door behind him. "I wonder if he will change."

"You mean fight on Mario's side?" Wendy raised her brows.

"My side," Luigi added.

"Let's go," she grabbed his wrist. "Daddy is going to want to know where we are."

* * *

Luigi only took one step into the castle when he felt a large hand grab him by the left horn. He growled and swiped his claws at his assailant only to lash at empty air. "What did I just do?"

"Seems your reflexes are sharp," Bowser said. "Now maybe you can answer some questions."

"Let go of him, daddy." Wendy shrieked.

"Half of my children are missing," Bowser continued to hold Luigi's horn. "Now I would like some answers. Where were the two of you?"

"I was terrorizing the Mushroom People," Luigi said. It wasn't an exact lie, the people were terrified of him. "It didn't take much. I never realized what racists they were."

"You don't even know the half of it," Bowser released him. "Wendy where you with him?"

"Iggy and I found him," Wendy explained. "Iggy finished his new helicopter and took me for a ride, we found Luigi and brought him home. Iggy wants to continue to test his helicopter."

"Where is Larry?"

"That I do not know," Luigi said. "He just mentioned there was someplace he had to go, and some things he had to do. Kammy knows more about it than I do."

"I'll talk with her," Bowser nodded. "Wendy, your husband needs to be alone right now."

"I understand," Wendy nodded. "There are a few things I have to do." She kissed Luigi's cheek before she ran towards the elevators.

"Already eager to strike fear in the hearts of the enemy?" Bowser raised an eyebrow.

Luigi nodded and turned towards a passing Goomba. After taking a deep breath, Luigi roared at the minion, causing the Goomba to jump.

"Excellent," Bowser folded his arms across his chest. "You still have far to go, but after plenty of training you will make Mario wet his pants in fear."

"I am the green thunder," Luigi grinned. "I strike fear in the hearts of toads, I am the green menace to the mushroom kingdom. I am Luigi Koopa." He had to admit it was a little fun pretending to be evil.

"That's it. Now your training will start with them," Bowser pointed to the rows of Koopas, Goombas, Buzzy Beetles and Shyguys. "Defeat them. Should be easy for ya, considering how you were able to fight them in the past."

"I do have to adjust my jumping skills with my new body," Luigi nodded. "I can also throw them."

"I'll leave you with them for an hour, then we have to work on your fire, and then your hammer throws." Bowser yawned and stretched. "I'm going to over see the Chucks. I'll be back in an hour."

Luigi nodded and turned to the soldiers he had to fight. Several of them were trembling. "Don't worry. I'll try and be easy on you." He ran towards the first row of Goombas. He jumped, and came down too soon. He didn't land on the head of the fungus, but on one of its feet instead. The Goomba released a loud shriek. "Sorry about that." It was going to be a long hour.

* * *

Tempo Town was nearly deserted. It wasn't much of a town to begin with, which was why Larry wanted to conquer it a few years ago, and would have succeeded, if it weren't for those damn zombies, now the town seems smaller than before.

"Does anyone live here?" Kamron asked.

"Lots of people do, Freckles." Silhouette said as she lead them to her motel room. "They are just smart enough to stay behind locked doors during the night." She stared at the sky. "Or when it is this cloudy."

"My name isn't Freckles," Kamron frowned. He did have an impressive amount of freckles on his cheeks.

"Don't have a heart attack over it," Silhouette yawned. "How you guys holding up?"

"I'm fine." Larry said. "Kamron, you get any injuries?"

"Nope," the Magikoopa shook his head.

"Good," Silhouette yawned again. "I don't know about you guys, but I could use a nap. I've been up since the asscrack of dawn."

"You are going to take a nap?" Kamron stared at her. "When this town is still under crisis."

"Hard to fight when your body isn't up for it," Silhouette raised a finger. "We take a twenty minute nap, raid the vending machines for snacks and then go out and fight again for a few hours, then have dinner, then fight some more, then go to bed and wake up early the next day."

"Maybe we should fight solo," Kamron suggested. "You go your way and Larry and I will go our way."

Larry grabbed the wizard in training by the back of his collar. "We just met her, don't have to be so rude."

"Suit yourself," Silhouette shrugged. "But It will be cheaper to split it three way than two way and before you bring it up I was already prepared to pay for it by staying on my own. I had no idea I'd run into you guys."

"I think we should join with her," Larry said. "She's a good fighter."

"So are ya in?" Silhouette smirked.

"We are in," Larry yawned. "I can actually use a nap myself."

* * *

Luigi ran the towel through his hair one last time before he threw it into the hamper shoot. Training had been long and hard, and his muscles were sore. The warm shower helped a little, at least he felt clean to meet with Wendy. She had a message taped to their door to meet her at the dining hall at five thirty.

"What time is it?" He glanced at the clock. He had about twelve more minutes before he could meet with her. He dressed as fast as possible, putting on his shirt and overalls and he put on his new collar and wristbands. His mother had told him it was not good manners to eat dinner while wearing your hat and he left it on one of the bedposts.

He examined himself in front of the full-length mirror while he combed his hair. "You are not bad looking for a reptile." He chuckled. He never thought of himself as unattractive as a human. He had felt a little self-conscious about his nose, and the little bit of paunch on his stomach. Then again Mario had even more of a belly and he oozed self confidence.

He wasn't even halfway to the dining hall when he was greeted by the scent of cooked ground beef, tomato sauce, garlic, onion, oregano, basil, Parmesan, and coriander. It almost smelled like his Aunt Callie's kitchen in the evening. The aroma alone caused him to run.

"Hey," Luigi arrived in time to see Wendy smack Roy's hand with a wooden spoon. "What's the deal sis?"

"The deal is I slaved over a hot stove to make a delicious dinner for my husband," Wendy glared at her brother. "Not for you, now keep your grubby paws off."

"I'm doing my new bro in law a favor," Roy said. "He might appreciate the fact that I took the poison first."

"Get out," Wendy roared.

"Okay, I'm going, sheesh." Roy ran out of there.

"The nerve of him," Wendy shook her head.

"You cooked?" Luigi asked once Roy had left.

"Luigi," Wendy brightened at the sound of Luigi's voice. "You are right on time." She removed the silver cover of one plate at the end of the table, revealing a plate of spaghetti. "Sit here."

"You made spaghetti," Luigi smiled and sat down.

"I made a whole meal," Wendy removed more lids. One dish contained the sauce, another contained meatballs, and a third had a tossed salad. There was also a basket filled with garlic bread. "I made everything from scratch, except for the bread I used for the bruschetta."

"Well if it tastes like it smells then I know it will be good," he used the tongs to add on the meatballs and ladled on the sauce before he sprinkled on some cheese. "There is plenty for you, and I'm sure we could have spared some for Roy."

"Don't forget your new appetite my famous warrior," Wendy sat down next to him. "And make sure you get some salad. You are going to need your veggies."

"I won't forget," He twirled some of the pasta on his fork before he speared a meatball. "I thought we would be more carnivorous because of our teeth." He placed the food in his mouth. It was delicious and savory. He closed his eyes as he chewed.

"There is still more for you to learn," Wendy said. "How is it?"

"Its wonderful," Luigi said. "Almost as good as my Aunt Callie's."

"This was my first time," Wendy's smile grew. "I just went by the books. I combined the chopped tomatoes, tomato paste, and tomato juice in the food processor and then I added the chopped onion and garlic and spices."

"First time?" Luigi made room on his plate for the bruschetta. "Maybe you have a gift."

"I'm a cooking savant," she chuckled. "Maybe it's a bit too early, lets see what else I can do first."

"So far it is good," he took a bite out of the bread. "This is good as well." He placed some salad on his plate. "What did you call me earlier? Famous Warrior?"

"It's your name," Wendy said. "Luigi means famous warrior, so does Ludwig." She took a bite from her plate." This is good," she blinked.

"Surprised yourself," Luigi grinned. "I guess I forgot the meaning of my name. It has been a while when I looked it up, forgot what Mario's was."

"Warlike," Wendy answered. "Kinda neat how your names fit together."

"Except my name doesn't fit me. I'm more of a clumsy fighter, or timid hero."

"You are braver than you think."

"I can see why your parents gave Ludwig his name, were the others named in a similar fashion?"

Wendy nodded. "Father wanted a name that suited a fire breather. Iggy is really just short for Ignatius and that name means fiery one. Dad told me that when Roy hatched his head and shell were red, almost maroon. Mother called him "Little Red" until they decided on Roy."

"And now it has faded to pink," Luigi took another bite of pasta.

"Morton was crying even inside the egg and once he hatched he never shut up, Mama said he was just like her father, Morton senior, and Larry was named after uncle Lawrence." She took a long drink from her glass. "Lemmy was kind of special. Daddy and Mama told me he hatched a little early, and his whole body was a yellowish color. He was pretty small and Mama said he was like a lemon in size and color. She called him her 'Little lemon' and later it became Lemmy."

"He grew up to be big and strong," Luigi did not mention that Lemmy was still shorter than everyone else.

"He was a sickly child, one of the doctors diagnosed him as failure to thrive because he wasn't growing fast enough, but you are right. He is strong and an acrobat."

"How did you get your name?" Luigi asked.

"Plumbers are not the only things that end up here," Wendy took a bite from her salad. "My mother came across a book that was based on a play. The story of Peter Pan and her favorite character was Wendy."

"Your parents were good and coming up with names."

"I'm sure you will also think of good names when we have our own children."

Luigi nearly choked on his pasta. "Sorry," he coughed. He never thought about that and pictured baby Koopas breaking out of their shell and reaching for him. "Although there is a chance I might be changed back into a human and I don't know if we can have children together."

"We can adopt," Wendy said." Or find some spell."

"You still want to be with me, even if I am transformed back?"

"Always," she grabbed his hand.

-


	11. Invitation

Chapter 11: Invitation

* * *

Tempo Town

"We don't have much to go on," Larry stared at the various notes the three of them had compiled over the last few days. "We still have no exact idea of which direction they are coming from." They had spent the last few days in town, hunting down and attacking every zombie they came across, now that the infestation is next to nil they were ready to find out where the monsters are coming from.

"Except for that news report from Chorusville," Kamron said.

"There were two other reports," Larry reminded him. "And the sightings and attacks are just as bad."

"Don't forget two of the places are from the north," Silhouette was looking over the vials of different waters, the ones that were labeled with the image of a heart were the pure water, and those that were labeled with a cross were the holy water. "And according to the map, Chorusville is in the north west."

"Wasn't that where you found the lab, Larry?" Kamron asked.

"No that was in the town of Half-Note Bay," Larry reminded him. The lab was set up in an abandoned hospital, how fitting for a place to generate zombies. "The cause wasn't pure science. A crystal, documented as the Lazarus Stone, was the primary ingredient."

"Someone got themselves a chunk of ol Lazarus?" Silhouette asked.

"Doctor Phillip," Larry could already feel the tears burn the back of his eyes. "He was prevalent in children's medicine. He had a daughter named Chloe. She had hair the color of corn silk and the most beautiful green eyes."

"You had a crush on her?" Kamron asked. "You never mentioned her before."

"It was too painful," Larry stared at his reflection in the television screen. "The hospital lost funding and the patients had to be moved. Chloe was one of them. She had a painful disease that weakened her. Doctor Phillip was afraid the move would have killed her. He stayed at the hospital and used every last coin in his bank account, even sold his own home and moved in the hospital to continue to try and cure her. He had a partner named Doctor Howard."

"That is a name I remember," Silhouette said. "He was mentioned in the news and in the game, except he was the main villain, not Doctor Phillip."

"He was," Larry felt a bitter tang in his mouth and the mere thought of that guy. "From what Chloe told me Howard started out nice and friendly. He was eager to help out Phillip and always encouraging. He was the one who came across the Lazarus Stone. He just never had an opportunity to test it out."

"Let me guess, he suggested using it to heal Chloe?" Silhouette asked

Larry nodded. "Philip didn't believe in magic and asked Howard to try and be more serious. He refused, but Howard made a serum involving the Lazarus stone, and it was only until Chloe had died he wanted to give it a try."

"But it was too late?" Kamron asked.

"No, it did work. Chloe was given a second chance at life and came back healthy and strong. Both Howard and Philip shared the credit, even though it was Howard's creation he insisted on sharing. They used the miracle serum on others who were sick, some wanted to use it on relatives that had recently died, but Philip refused. He didn't mind using it on those who have been gone for seconds, minutes, even a couple hours at most, but not those who have been dead for days. Howard thought differently."

"I think I know where this is going," Silhouette said. "He decided to try it out, was a success and he went mad from it."

"Mad, greedy and selfish," Larry continued. "He wanted to test it out further on corpses in the ground. He had been working on a machine that would also use the stone in privacy and he stole the rock and used it. The zombie rising had started. Howard killed Phillip."

"What about Chloe?" Silhouette asked.

"She helped me out. She was there when I arrived. She actually saved me. It was because of Chloe that I know about the zombie's weakness to pure water and sunlight and how to kill them. Because of her I was able to contact Iggy and he built my first salt rock launcher."

"Larry," Kamron placed a hand on his shoulder. "You don't have to continue."

"What?" Larry blinked. He felt the tear hanging from his chin and he wiped it away. He wasn't aware that he was crying. "I think need to get this out. She was there until the end. We set it up so the lab would explode. Howard wasn't going to go down without taking me with him. Chloe managed to tackle him and struggled with him. She told me to get out of there. I refused, except I was pulled out by a few Boos."

"By a ghost?"

Larry nodded. "My father and Kammy both got worried and sent Boos to find me. I returned home. I said nothing to anyone, until I reached Kammy, and I cried in her arms for hours. I never cried like that before."

The room was silent. The only sound they could hear was the various metallic dings in the cooling system and their own breathing.

"I'm sorry," Silhouette broke the silence with a whisper.

"That is why I came back, not for these people. I came back for her."

"I'm fighting for someone too," Silhouette said. "That is why we gotta keep moving, and I have a feeling this is not going to lead us to a mad scientist."

"We should stop by that lab," Kamron said. "If we are heading north west. We can go there, and then go north. We might find more about what we are dealing with."

"Are you sure that is wise?" Silhouette asked.

"It's a good starting point," Kamron frowned.

"We are going there," Larry said. He still hadn't said a proper goodbye.

* * *

Dark Land

Luigi fell to the ground, from the sheer force of Ludwig's tackle. The younger Koopa had gotten a good hold on him, and held Luigi down by his arms.

"C'mon Luigi," Wendy cheered from the sidelines. "You can still defeat him."

"That's it Ludwig," Dru cheered on.

Luigi winced from Ludwig's strength. For someone who spends most of his time composing music, he was certainly strong. There was only one idea he still hadn't tried. He slid his tail along the floor and against Ludwig's feet, causing him to loose balance.

"Watch out," Dru shouted.

Luigi rolled out from under Ludwig and once he rose to his feet he tackled the younger Koopa.

"Good try," Ludwig said before he slammed Luigi against the wall.

Actual stars sparked in Luigi's eyes once his body came in contact with the stone walls. His body was already sore from the various stretches, and exorcises. Bowser wanted the boys to improve their hands on combat by having them wrestle each other. The women, and Junior watched from the sidelines. First it was Morton verses Ludwig, while Luigi defeated Lemmy and now he and Ludwig had to duke it out before the champion went head to head with Roy.

"Luigi be careful," Wendy called out.

"I think this is just about over," Ludwig grabbed Luigi and pushed him to the floor. "Ready to call it?"

"Hell I'm calling it," Roy said. "This round goes to Ludwig."

"I'm going to take fifteen minutes before we can wrestle," Ludwig grabbed one of the damp towels folded neatly on top of a Goomba's head.

"Fine," Roy cracked his knuckles. "You are only delaying the inevitable." He smiled at Luigi. "Not bad. I thought you'd go down about five minutes in with Ludwig." He slugged Luigi in the arm.

"Thanks," Luigi choked out through clenched teeth.

"You keep forgetting about how he defeated us in the past," Wendy handed Luigi one of the towels.

"Along with Mario," Roy said.

"He can hold his own," Wendy said. "Defeated King Boo all by himself." She used her most smug stone and folded her arms across her chest.

"I did," Luigi took the towel and, while ignoring the protests from his arms, mopped the sweat from his face.

"We are going to use the hot tub," Wendy took him by the hand.

"Hot tub," every inch of his body cheered. "That is exactly what I need."

"This way dear," Wendy led him toward the elevators. "Its on the first floor."

"Along with the racquet ball court," Luigi recalled the first day he had met Tethys as she and Roy were walking from the court to the tub. He wasn't sure what to make of her at first. He now knew she was a princess from the prairnet kingdom, second in line to the throne and seems to be attracted to the bad boy types.

"You are knowing your way around the castle better," Wendy beamed.

He nodded. He still needed a map at times, but he new where all the master bedrooms were located, where the main dining hall and kitchen was, along with the gyms and training rooms. It was still going to be a while before he figured out where every location was in every single part of the area.

A familiar scent caused Luigi to freeze in his steps. "Your father is here." It hadn't taken him long to recognize Bowser's scent. Everyone had a scent that was unique to them and he can tell the difference between his in-laws, detect the different species that served the Troop. He also recognized Kammy and Kamek by their scent.

"Oh that kid," Bowser chuckled. He didn't even seem to notice them and instead was staring at a letter in his hand. "Sweet little guy. He used to be a bit of a crybaby."

"Daddy," Wendy greeted her father.

"Ah," Bowser blinked. "How was your training, Luigi?"

"Not bad," Luigi tilted his head until he heard a few joints in his neck pop. "I wouldn't call it exactly good either."

"I know you didn't wipe out that early," Bowser said. "I saw Morton head to his room over an hour ago, although I wonder if he allowed himself to be defeated. I had to drag that kid out by his horn. You know what he does? He uses a cam to create an online talk show where he answers email, unbelievable."

"I fought against Lemmy at first," Luigi said. "And he is quite agile, and then I lost against Ludwig."

"He lasted nearly an half hour," Wendy added.

"Not bad at all," Bowser's smile grew. "Looks like it is down between Roy and Ludwig, and the champion gets to face off with me."

"You didn't say that earlier," Luigi said.

"That's the surprise."

"Nice surprise," Luigi refrained from gulping. He was glad he had just lost. The idea of wrestling against Roy was bad enough already.

"What is in the letter?" Wendy pointed at the paper in Bowser's hand.

"Oh this?" The Koopa King held it up. "It's a letter from Prince Mallow."

"I know him," Luigi smiled. "He's a cloud person, originally from Nimbusland but he ended up at Tadpole Pond. He and Mario went around finding the pieces to Star Road." He tried not to let the fact that it was another adventure that Mario went on by himself.

"That's the one," Bowser nodded. "Turns out his parents are having a nice ball and he sent me two invitations."

"Two invitations?" Luigi raised his brows.

"Yeah, for me and someone else."

"I can help you with the decision," Wendy held out her hand. "You can give them to me and Luigi."

"Not so fast," Bowser held up the letter and the invites. "What makes you think you deserve them?"

"Because I'm your only daughter?" She batted her lashes at him.

"Still waiting."

"Luigi and I could use an evening out?"

"So could Ludwig and Dru, the same for Roy and Tethys."

"Because we came across you first," she frowned. "Those are all very good reasons."

"Is there a reason you might not want to go?" Luigi asked.

"I do have to prep my troops and fine tune some of my plans," Bowser said. He stared at Wendy. "I still don't see why you should still get them."

"Well who are you going to take?" Wendy asked.

"I hadn't thought about that."

"Do you know who is going to be there?" Luigi asked.

Bowser shrugged. "Knowing Mallow, he probably invited the whole pond, plus Mario of course, and—Mario."

"It would be kinda awkward for you," Wendy continued her cute poses.

"It would be," Bowser nodded. "It would be awkward for him, even more if the Koopa that arrives is his own brother, even more if he finds out Luigi is now a member of the Troop." He still had no idea that Mario already knows about his brother's new form.

"That means we can go?" Wendy asked.

"Certainly," he handed her the two invites.

"May I get a new dress?"

"Now you are pushing it," he pointed at the two of them as he made his way down the hall.

"It was worth a try," she shrugged.

"New dress or old dress you will still be the most beautiful there," Luigi told her. "And if you still want a new dress I think Kammy can play the role of Fairy Godmother."

"You are so right," she smiled. "Lets get that hot tub set up."

* * *

That long soak helped. Luigi felt a little better once he stepped out of he hot bubbling water that was treated with both Epsom salts and menthol. His whole body had a hint of mint fragrance, but he did not care. He felt better, but was still too sore to continue training. Wendy suggested that he stay in bed until dinner.

The idea of a new meal prepared and cooked by Wendy brought a smile to his snout. Each new recipe she tried she cooked flawlessly and her use of spices and herbs made each meal flavorful and memorable. It was almost a shame that Mario could not sample some of her food.

Luigi yawned. He tried to take a nap, but he couldn't. He rested in bed for nearly an hour, but still did not feel sleepy enough. He thought about just looking for a book to check out and read, but there were not many books in the room.

"Probably have a whole library," he sat up. There was the option of using the computer. Perhaps he could play a game, or better yet he could send e-mail to both Mario and Peach since it was most likely that they did receive invites. He could also see if Iggy was online and ask for a status report.

Iggy was indeed online. "I'm taking a quick break." Was the message he sent to Luigi.

"How is it coming along?" Luigi asked. He was also in the middle of typing out a small letter to Mario.

"We have determined that your DNA is one hundred percent Koopa."

Luigi rolled his eyes. It took them that long to figure it out? "Anything else?"

"We have been going through books on genetics, not to mention wasted a handful of pocket notebooks working out equations and gotten high off dry erase markers, and no we were not sitting around just sniffing them. It's from constant use of the dry erase board."

"What ever happened to the chalkboard?" Luigi typed.

"Hey get with the times," Iggy typed back. "But we have come to the determining factor of changing your DNA back to human, without damaging your unique chromosomes that make you, well you."

"Great." Luigi had also finished the e-mail. He pushed send. Now he just had to write one to Peach.

"Now we just have to start building the machine, oh and there is someone else helping."

"Is it one of the ghosts?" Luigi asked.

"Shivers has helped with the cleanup and Neville has gone through several of the books with us, but it is someone who is still alive…oh and she is reading the message and she wants it to be a surprise."

"You want me to come over?"

"As soon as you can."

"It might night be until tomorrow," Luigi typed. "I was wrestling with Ludwig."

"Yeah, good idea to wait until tomorrow, okay break time is over."

Luigi wished him a silent good luck while he finished the letter to the princess.

* * *


	12. The Guest

**Chapter 12:** **The Guest**

**

* * *

**

Luckily for Luigi, Bowser did not assign him any training exorcises after breakfast. The Koopa King said next to nothing during breakfast and once he had finished eating, he stood up, released a large belch, and went on his way to another part of the castle.

"Something's wrong with daddy," Junior said after Bowser had left. "He didn't give out any chores."

"Maybe he didn't have any in mind," Lemmy suggested. "When he thinks of some he will give them to us."

"Or maybe he just forgot," Junior smiled at the idea and seemed to be somewhat relieved. "I could go and remind him."

"Teacher, teacher you forgot to give out homework," Morton scowled at the youngest Koopa. "Shut up." He roared at his brother.

"Lay off," Ludwig smacked Morton on the back of the head. "He's just a kid."

"Do not smack your brother," Kammy pointed at the eldest Koopaling. "Don't roar at your brother." She gave Morton the stink eye.

"You just want to spend the entire day in your room," Roy said. "With your web cam and your talk show." He used his fingers to make quotations at talk show.

"None of you see the big picture," Morton said. "I have a complex site that gets at least a thousand hits a day."

"What, A My Dungeon?" Wendy asked.

Morton scowled. "For your information sis, I am now and Internet phenomenon. I make pod casts about my favorite games, shows, comic books, and movies. Once a week I do an actual show where DJ Goomba plays music and I get guests from around the castle. I read e-mail live and I do web cam talks about my thoughts on life in the show."

"Must be a short segment," Roy said, earning chuckles from Lemmy and Junior.

"At least it is more productive than just having sex in my room all damn night," Morton was pink in the face. "Your room is next to mine, do you have to bang against the walls every time?"

The clatters of forks against the plates were heard all across the table. Luigi was glad he had already swallowed what he was drinking or he would have spat it out. Poor Tethys's face was a darker shade of green than normal.

"You two banging against the walls, Dru's singing when she and Ludwig hit the high notes and Luigi's roaring keep me up at night." Morton continued.

Luigi felt the color drain from his face. He couldn't move, nor could he breath. He had never felt this embarrassed since the time Mario pantsed him during middle school.

"Morton Koopa Junior," Kammy grabbed Morton by the horn. "Breakfast is over for you, now stand up."

"But I'm still hungry," Morton protested.

"You should have thought about it before you used those words." She pulled on his horn. "Now stand up."

Morton got out of his chair and stood as tall as he could. He had to tilt his head to the side due to Kammy's firm grip. "Can you let go?"

"Nope," Kammy shook her head. "I'm taking you to the bathroom and you are going to hold a bar of soap in your mouth for at least an hour."

"I didn't say any cuss words."

"No, but you still used filthy language, and in front of your baby brother, you are lucky I am not going to tell your father."

"I'll tell him," Junior smiled.

"Awww man," Morton whimpered as he was dragged away.

"I want the rest of you to finish eating," Kammy turned to look at them. "And if you do need a chore, Junior, you can always clean your room."

* * *

"I don't mean to roar," Luigi said as he finished brushing back his hair. They had finished the breakfast in silence ten minutes after the outburst and he was preparing for his trip to see Gadd. "I just really can't help it."

"Ignore Morton," Wendy opened the door and looked out. "He's not my brightest brother."

"His idea of a Web show is a bit creative." Luigi set his brush down.

"He thinks people want to watch and hear him talk."

"Maybe he might want to use his idea to make money," Luigi licked his talons and smoothed one lock of hair back into place.

"Why are you de--oh there you are." She stepped back inside with two flat cardboard boxes in her hands. "Kinda glad I did over bake last night." She set the boxes down on the table. "Maybe he does have a good idea, but what he said today was disgusting."

"I won't argue with that," he placed his hat on his head. "Did he forget there was a minor at the table?"

"He is still a minor himself," Wendy said. "At least for another year. Morty never really thinks before he says anything, especially when he is pissed off, and Roy did goad him into getting that angry."

"Okay, I have the underground map that will take me to the woods," Luigi placed the folded map into his pocket. "I have no idea when I will be back."

"Don't forget the pizzas," Wendy pointed to the two boxes. "You might get hungry on the way, they are cold right now, but I think you can cook them with your fire."

"Sometimes I'm in the mood for cold pizza," he stared into her light blue eyes. They never seemed so beautiful before. "Have I ever told you, you have the most beautiful eyes?"

"This is the first time," Wendy said.

"Well they are."

"I think you have the cutest moustache, never shave it off."

"I never plan too." He pulled her close and stared into her eyes before he kissed her.

* * *

Luigi did not feel the least bit hungry during his trip through the sewers on his way to Boo Woods, nor did he feel any hungry while walking through the forest. He came across a few toads and while they did seem nervous at the mere site of him it did not last long. Luigi wasn't certain what it was until he saw one toad point to his hat and mouthed Luigi's name. It seemed the mention of his transformation had gotten through the rest of the kingdom.

"Good after-ahhh," Shivers answered the door. "I mean good afternoon master Luigi. Please forgive my rudeness."

"You don't have to apologize," Luigi said. "And I promise not to breath any fire around you."

"Oh good," Shivers smile was brief. "You can breath fire?"

Luigi nodded. "I no longer need a blow torch." He blinked. "Has Iggy produced any fire?"

"Oh no it is not that sir," Shivers shook his head. "I am aware of what the Koopis Draconae can do, and I know that you are currently one of them, but I am still shocked about the abilities you have."

Luigi shrugged. "You might not have to get used to this." He pointed at his body. "If Gadd and Iggy come through then I will be human again."

"Oh good," Shivers smiled. "Those two have been hard at work non stop, even when we do have guests come over."

"That reminds me, Iggy mentioned they have a special guest over."

"Hey Weegie," Mario was not the person, Luigi was expecting. "Is that pizza?"

"Yes it is," Luigi held the boxes high above his head. "Don't tell me you are the special guest."

"Trust me sir, he isn't," Shivers stared down at the older of the two brothers.

"So they have told you?" Mario raised his eyebrows repeatedly.

"They didn't tell me who it is," Luigi handed the boxes to Shivers. "You don't mind putting these in the fridge?"

"I won't sir, but are you certain you wouldn't want them heated up, it is around lunch time after all."

"Please," Mario pressed his hands together.

"They are for sharing," Luigi nodded. "Wait, where is Luggs?"

"He is still in his painting," Shivers floated down the hall. "You don't have to worry about your pizzas being stolen."

"Thank God," Mario shook his head. "I have seen that guy eat, makes me look like I'm on a fast."

"I'll say," Luigi laughed. "Of course the way I eat may make you look like you are on a diet."

"Really?" Mario poked him in the stomach. "Where are you putting it? You only have the same small amount of bulge as you did when you were a human."

"I still weigh more."

"Well yea, you have a wider frame, and who knows how much that shell weighs."

"Lets find the others," Luigi was tired of just standing around.

"They are in the largest lab," Mario said. "C'mon, this way."

"I know where it is," Luigi said, but allowed Mario to lead anyway.

"Here is Mr. Disgusting," Mario paused by Luggs's portrait. "Man, he aint winning any beauty contests."

"You should have seen him when I sucked him up," Luigi shuddered at the memory. "He never did pause to wipe his mouth or any thing."

"You know who he reminds me of? Remember that one Monty Python movie?"

"Mr. Creosote?" Luigi and Mario had worn out their VHS copy of that movie. "Good lord you are right."

"I wonder if he died the same way, just blew up."

"Mario," Luigi covered his eyes. "Please stop. We are going to eat soon."

"Sorry," Mario chuckled.

The largest lab was set up in the basement of the mansion. Luigi had wondered how they were able to make what was once a damp smelling room so clean and sterile. It may have been the new tiles that had been set up.

There were several wires set out on clean strips of cloth, they were the only familiar parts that Luigi could identify amongst the technology that was spread out across the room. There were also charts hung up on easels, computer print outs spread across counters, and the aforementioned dry erase boards, filled with mathematical equations that gave Luigi just a headache by just looking at it.

Gadd and Iggy were seated close together at one of the tables; their heads were nearly touching as they loomed over what appeared to be an engine. Tiny screwdrivers, tweezers and the smallest soldering iron were within an arms reach of them.

"I feel like I'm in a garage," Mario whispered.

Luigi nodded. He dared not say a word, he did not want to risk a surprise and cause either Gadd or Iggy to make a mistake.

"I think that is good for now," Gadd said and sat back. The pop was loud enough for Mario and Luigi to hear from where they stood. "Ugh I'm getting to old to be leaning forward like that for hours."

"Should we take a break?" Iggy sat back.

"I think now would be a good time for a break," Gadd rubbed his stomach. "It should be lunch time. I'll ask Shivers to make us something."

"No need for extra cooking," Mario said. "Luigi brought us some pizza."

"Luigi's here," Iggy slid off his stool. "How's the rest of my family?"

"Everyone is well, except we don't know about Larry," Luigi said. He chose not to inform Iggy of what had happened at breakfast. "Wendy and I are going to Prince Mallow's ball this weekend."

"Don't remind me," Mario paled. "Peach wants me to get fitted for a new tux."

"I already have one," Luigi placed his hands behind his head.

"Lunch is served," Shivers floated in, carrying a stack of plates, and napkins on a tray. "Shall we bring it to the laundry part of the lab?"

"Laundry part?" Mario was confused.

"He means over here," Luigi ran over to the back of the room and turned on the light. There was a small counter, next to a washer and dryer. In front of it was a card table with foldable chairs.

"Just place the pizzas on the machines," Shivers instructed to the two ghost waiters who flew in after him.

"Just need some drinks," Mario said.

"She is bringing the iced tea," Shivers told him.

"She?" Luigi asked. He turned to the stairwell and felt his pulse speed up. Princess Daisy was slowly climbing down, carrying tray with several glasses of iced tea.

"Where should I set these?" Daisy asked. She was not wearing her crown, or her usual yellow dress either. She was wearing a yellow blouse, a pair of what appeared to be blue jeans, along with a white lab coat. Her usual flower earrings were still in her ears.

"You can set them down in the middle of the table for now," Gadd said.

"Hello Daisy," Luigi swallowed. He hadn't seen his friend in a while. How many times had he escorted her to fairs, the movies and to restaurants at the same time while Mario was with Peach? Were those actual dates? Was she in love with him? He still had some feelings for her. He felt a bit aroused by the fact she was wearing jeans. She looked great in them. He pictured Wendy in blue jeans and he felt even more aroused.

"Hi Luigi," Daisy didn't look at him. "It's been a while."

"Daisy do you," Luigi coughed. "Would you, uh. Can I see you at the top of the stairs?"

"Once I am finished," Daisy said. There was no coldness or anger to her voice. She still sounded as warm as she usually did.

"Sure," Luigi coughed again and ran up the stairs without looking at anyone.

Daisy joined him minutes later. "So," she still averted her eyes.

"So," he stared at the ceiling. His tail flicked back and forth. "Nice lab coat." Well that was dumb. Of all the things to say to her, he had to say something like that.

"Thanks," she stretched her arms. "I have been assisting them. I clean up things organize tools, and I help out in the kitchen. I have learned a lot about genetics."

"That's great," he stared into her eyes. "Were we dating?" He stared at his wedding band. "Before this happened?"

"It did feel like we were," she sighed.

"Did you love me?" Great he got that out.

She shrugged. "Did you?"

He also shrugged. "I'm not certain. I know we were friends. We are friends. We are still friends, right?"

"I don't think that will ever change," she smiled. "Except you should be with the one you love, and do you love your wife?"

"I think I am falling in love," Luigi held up his hand. "I did say I do."

Daisy nodded. "I don't know what your belief system is and I know this might make me look like the jilted girlfriend."

"Our grandmother has always told us divorce is a bit of a sin," Luigi said. "Not that I want to divorce her."

"I understand," she reached for the doorknob. "We can still hang out, and I still can beat you at tennis."

"You want to bet?" Luigi smiled.

"Don't make wagers that you can't keep," Daisy chuckled. "I'm famished, lets get some pizza before Mario eats it all."

"He better saved us a few slices," he followed her down the stairs and to the miniature dining area.

"Goodness," Gadd stared at the slice in his hands. "This crust is like a wet newspaper."

"It's not bad when you fold it," Iggy said before he took a bite.

"You are supposed to fold it," Mario said. "And that is the way the crust is supposed to be.

"The toppings are falling off," Gadd stared at a slice of pepperoni that had just fallen on his plate.

"This is the way a pizza is supposed to be," Mario looked up when Luigi and Daisy grabbed their plates. "Hey Weege, did you go to Brooklyn just to get me pizza?"

"Nope," Luigi smiled. He had to tell Wendy that she had impressed Mario with her cooking. "Wendy made it."

"Could she try a different style next time, sonny?" Gadd asked. "I heard this place Chicago has good pizza."

"Don't insult my wife's cooking." Luigi pointed at him.

"She made this?" Mario had actually stopped eating and was just staring at his slice.

"Wait," Iggy swallowed. "When did she learn to cook?"

"Not long ago," Luigi said before he turned to Gadd. "Listen to what my brother says. You are eating it wrong."

"She actually made Brooklyn style pizza?" Mario was still frozen.

"She said she got it from a book," Luigi explained. "Although the recipe called it New York style." He turned to Daisy. "This is the best kind of pizza you can get, but you have to fold it when you pick it up."

"I fold it in half?" Daisy asked.

"No," He picked up his slice. "Just the back corners. It keeps everything on the slice." He closed his eyes and took a bite. Wendy's pizza was just as good warmed up, as it was the previous evening.

* * *


	13. Chloe

Chapter 13: Chloe

* * *

Pizza grease was not the most difficult thing to clean off a plate. It was a simple few good wipes with a dish sponge and then a rinse before setting it on the dish rack. Daisy had cleaned bigger and more difficult messes before around her castle when she wanted to help out.

"Are you sure you don't need any help?" Shivers asked. He was hovering right next to her.

"I'm almost done," Daisy grabbed the last plate. "I just need to clean this and two more glasses and I'm done."

"You just seem to be a bit troubled."

"I just have a lot on my mind." It was only one thing, or rather one person on her mind. Peach and Mario were the ones who had informed her of Luigi's transformation and she took that in good stride. She even accepted the fact he was married. Of course she wasn't sure how serious the situation was until she had seen Luigi hours earlier. It wasn't the fact he was a Koopa that had gotten to her, or the ring on his hand. It was when he said he was falling in love with Wendy.

Why did it get to her? They weren't engaged, they weren't going steady, and they weren't even boyfriend and girlfriend. Like Luigi, she wasn't even certain if they were dating. Maybe it was that saying about not knowing how well you got it until it is gone?

If he weren't married would she still find him attractive as a reptile? He still had the same beautiful light blue eyes as before, the same friendly smile, even if his teeth were now longer and sharper. He was the cutest Koopa she had seen.

"I could ask the professor to release Melody from her portrait," Shivers smiled. "She could play something nice on the piano. There is the saying about whistling while you work."

"Thank you for the offer," Daisy smiled back at him. "But I am almost finished."

"I understand," the ghost's smile faded.

"However I can still ask Gadd to release her. It would be nice to have some soothing music. Maybe Gadd and Iggy would work better and faster with some back ground music."

"Oh splendid," Shivers's smile returned. "Best not to mention the upcoming royal ball to her. She used to live for such an event," he pause and turned back to face her. "No pun intended."

"I understand," Daisy felt a little disappointed she was also not going to such an event. She never did meet Mallow.

"The same for the Whirlindas. The music and the dancing would have been perfect for them."

"Those balls are a bit stuffy, mostly just dancing and talking. I prefer parties with games and other entertainment," she smiled. "That's what we will do. While everyone is at the ball we will have a party."

"Where will we have this party?"

"Here of course, we'll let all the ghosts out and can call Toad and Toadette, and Yoshi of course."

"We should run by this with the Professor," Shivers reminded her.

"I'm sure he'll like the idea," Daisy knew that even if he didn't she would be able to convince him. "It is a few days from now and both and Iggy would like the break." She skipped her way down to the basement door. "Professor Gadd."

"Ah good Daisy," Gadd called up from the bottom of the stairs. "We have a small task for you."

"What is it?" Daisy asked once she stepped down off the bottom step.

"We need a scan of this," Iggy held up drawing of a strange machine. "Also a scan of the blue prints. They are pretty big, so you might have to scan them in two or three different sections and then use the art program to copy and paste them onto a larger format."

"No problem," Daisy smiled.

"And once you are done you can save it to a disc and upload the information to my laptop," Professor Gadd added. "And save it on a back up disk, also on my flash drive."

"And mine," Iggy added.

"I'll be happy too, professor, you know that Mario, Peach, and Luigi are going to a royal ball in Nimbusland?"

"We have heard it," Iggy said." Not just from them. Wendy has sent me the e-mail detailing everything."

"I thought that on the same night, we could have party, for just us," Daisy said. "And the Ghosts."

"A party for the ghosts, that sounds like a delightful idea," Gadd smiled. "I'm sure they will enjoy it."

"Not just them, for us, and Toad, Toadette and Yoshi, we can have games, music, dancing, and food."

"A party?" Gadd sat up. "For me as well? I like parties."

"It would be a nice break," Iggy added.

"So can we?" Daisy teetered on her heels.

"Of course," Gadd nodded. "We will have a grand ole party."

* * *

_Halfnote Bay_

It was a good thing Larry made sure to clean and rub oil on his salt rocket launcher, ever since they had left Tempo Town here had been nothing but zombies, zombies, and even more zombies. There were also various spooks that also came out during the night, shadows, hobgoblins, and straw heads. He was thankful they had yet to come across any dopples or reachers.

"The flare is about to end," Kamron shouted. He was holding his wand above his head.

"I'm on it," Larry fired his weapon at the line of zombies in front of him. "Actually we are on it." He said as soon as he heard Silhouette fire her gun.

"Kamron look out," the cat girl shot her gun towards Kamron's direction.

Larry turned in time to see a hobgoblin grab Kamron by the collar and moan out a song. "Damn it." He looked up, and sure enough the flare faded, and as long as Kamron was mute he would not be able to cast another one.

"Keep firing," Silhouette struck the blunt end of her weapon on top of a zombie's head before she spun around and fired at another corpse. "Don't stop, it is almost dawn."

"I'm not stopping," he continued to aim at anything that would either shuffle or float and fire the powerful rockets made out of salt rock, sometimes a single shot was enough to take out two.

"Don't worry about me," Kamron said. He was able to get his voice back and when Larry glanced at his friend's surroundings he was able to see the clear puddle and the fragments of glass. "Another flare?"

"Just use your magic on the floaters," Silhouette instructed.

"Spirit drain," Kamron pointed his wand at one of the shadows.

Larry was able to focus on the corpses, and most of them could sense the approaching dawn. There were less around than before and those that were still out were already shuffling to wherever it was they hid during the day. He wasn't going to allow them all to run away. He fired two more rockets before heard the familiar click, not of his gun jamming, but of him out of ammo.

"Not now," he glared at his launcher. "Don't run out on me right now."

"That isn't when you say it," Silhouette lowered her shotgun. "You complain to your gun when you have run out and you are surrounded by the enemy, not when they are gone."

"But I wanted to get rid of them all before they are gone," Larry said. "That way there will be less of them the next night." He knew he should let it go. The point was as mute as his corpse finder.

"We can fight more of them tonight," Kamron said.

"He's right," Silhouette nodded. "First we need to find a hotel and check in."

"Is it nappy time already?" Kamron asked.

"Not yet," Silhouette stared at him. "It would be easier to take inventory of our weapons and ammo when we are in a room, unless you feel tired."

"Only a little," Kamron yawned. "We did get up pretty early."

"Before we find a hotel I want to get something to eat," Larry rubbed his stomach. He missed the large and elaborate meals he received at the castle. "And we may have to wait. Most people don't want to leave the safety of their homes when it's dark. A lot of places are probably not open, not for a few more minutes anyway."

"That means there is no one at the front desk of any hotel," Kamron said.

"We are on foot," Silhouette pointed out. "By the time we make it to anyplace they will be open. I agree with Larry, food first and then we find a room. What is everyone in the mood for?"

"Whatever is open," Larry stared at the pink stained sky. The place was the same as he had last remembered, except there was one main difference. There was a tall brass statue. "Plenty to find since we are in the middle of town." He pointed at the statue.

"Ah yes, the town square statue," Silhouette stared at the statue. "I wonder what the town founder looks like."

"I have no idea," Larry shrugged. "This wasn't here last time."

"Did they have a town anniversary since then?" Kamron asked. "If they celebrated a centennial they might have put up a statue."

"It has been a couple of years since I've been here," Larry shrugged.

"Let's check it out," Silhouette was already ahead of them. "Might kill a few minutes for store owners and employees to get to their places."

"She is too hyper," Kamron whispered.

"You have to be very energetic to fight what we are fighting," Larry said.

"She might get us killed."

"I doubt it," Larry shook his head. "She is pretty skilled."

"Very, she almost fights better than you, no offense."

"None taken, but it has been years since I fought against the undead."

"Yeah, why would she be constantly fighting them?"

"Good question, and you should ask her."

"Me?" Larry blinked. "She did say she was fighting for someone."

"Hey, Larry, get over here." Silhouette was standing next to the statue. "You have got to see this." She was waving her arms around.

"Better go see," Larry ran up to the statue. What he saw nearly rendered his legs useless.

The bronze statue was carved to resemble him and it seemed to be staring at him. The statue even had its own salt rock launcher.

"Uh Larry?" Kamron tapped on his shoulder.

"I see it," Larry swallowed.

"You didn't tell me the people would be grateful."

"I had no idea."

"There is an inscription," Silhouette pointed at the plaque at the base. "'Larry Koopa, the champion zombie slayer, we of Half Note will be forever in gratitude to his hero'. I wonder if these are the folk who designed the game."

"Could be." Larry shrugged.

"Do you know what this means?" Silhouette smiled.

"The people here love him?" Kamron asked.

"Even better, free stuff."

* * *

The free stuff wasn't exactly free, not what Silhouette had hoped for. The people at the fast food diner were ecstatic that Larry had returned to take care of the zombies again. They were willing to let him have his order for free, while Kamron and Silhouette only had to pay for half. They all had the breakfast burrito combo, consisting of a burrito filled with eggs peppers and sausage, and it came with fried potato cakes and small cartons of juice. Larry had ordered two combos and two fruit cups.

The hotel wasn't free either. The people behind the desk had divided up the price of the room three ways and removed Larry's section from the bill. Technically they got only one third off. Once everything was put away, Larry stepped out.

"Where are we going?" Kamron asked.

"The reason why we came here," Larry said. "The site of the lab."

"It is going to be difficult to find clues," Silhouette said. "They bulldozed the place and built a shopping center. That was what the lady behind the desk said."

"They bulldozed the place?" Larry asked in shock. "They can't, that was her resting ground."

"Didn't they give her a proper burial?" Silhouette asked.

"No," Larry shook his head. "They put up a headstone, but the explosion was huge. How could they do this?"

"I don't think they knew," Kamron said softly.

"How could they not know?" Larry growled. "How could they?" He ran towards the direction of the lab, and didn't care if anyone had followed him.

It took him a half hour to reach the place. A passing driver offered him a ride, and in return, Larry nearly bit the man's head off. He could have been more polite, he had asked everything about the lab, and the poor guy didn't know.

"Thanks," he barked out when he stepped out and onto the curb of the shopping center. "So this is now, your final resting place?" He stared into the window of the craft store; it was empty save for a toad sweeping the floor. He noticed the other stores in the vicinity. Two of them were department stores; another was one that sold those scented lotions and bubble baths that Wendy liked. Another was a dentist office. There was also a shoe store and a restaurant.

"Larry," Kamron caught up to him. "Don't do that."

"Do what?" Larry asked.

"Leave without us," Silhouette said. "We had to rely on running and teleporting."

"Teleporting?" Larry turned to Kamron. "You know how to teleport?"

"Not very well," Kamron still had sweat on his face and he looked paler than usual." I kinda got sick."

"You threw up twice," Silhouette said. "I nearly yerfed myself." She turned to the store. "Sad state of the world these days. They would rather have another one of these instead of hospital for kids."

"Don't say that," Kamron hissed.

"No guys," Larry held up a hand. He did not need for them to fight. "I never really got to say goodbye before." He fell to his knees. "I never got to thank her. She was special, and when we weren't fighting during the day she would take me places. We went to the arcade and to the skating ring, and the pizza place."

"Larry," Kamron whispered in a frightened tone.

"When I first started to fight I wanted to do it so I could take over Tempo Town and later all of Harmony, but she opened my eyes. She was the greatest friend a guy could have." He wiped the tears from his eyes. He could almost see her reflection in the glass. In fact he was seeing her reflection. "What?" He turned around, only to see the shocked expressions of his two companions.

"Don't turn around," Chloe's voice wavered. It sounded distorted, but it was her. "I'm still here."

"Chloe?" Larry spun around.

"Hello Larry," Chloe was floating in front of the glass. Her form was pale and transparent and had a soft glow around her body. "I never knew I was that much of an influence."

"Chloe, oh god I'm sorry," Larry stood up.

"Why are you sorry?" Chloe asked.

"I didn't come back for you. I never came by to thank you and say good bye."

"You couldn't have come back," Chloe said. "And we couldn't both leave, not with Howard."

"Is he around?" Kamron asked.

Chloe shook her head and pointed to the ground. "He's down there, where he should be."

"What about you?" Larry asked.

"I might have gone up there," Chloe stared at the sky. "I was on my way the first time. I think it is because I was brought back to life."

"I can find a way to get you to the good place," Larry said. "You deserve it."

"Do I?" Chloe blinked. "If it wasn't for me then there wouldn't have been an outbreak. They shouldn't have brought me back."

"Don't say that."

"It's true. I was supposed to stay dead. That was why I held Howard down."

"You deserve to be someplace better," Larry clenched his fists. "And there was a reason why you were brought back."

"It was because of love," Silhouette said.

"Maybe so," Chloe sighed. "But it was still against nature, and as such I have to stay here."

"Do you haunt the place?" Kamron asked.

"Kamron," Silhouette hissed and slugged him in the arm.

"Not quite," Chloe shook her head. "I stay hidden during the day and I explore at night. I have stopped a few would be thieves, and now that the zombies have returned I try to lure them into the paths of those who try to fight."

"You are still doing good," Larry said. "When this is over I'm going to make sure you get a decent resting place."

"This is where I died," Chloe stretched out her arms. "This is where I stay."

"My brother is a fan of a scientist who is an expert on ghosts. If anyone can help you it will be this guy," Larry clenched his fists. "I promise I will end this mess for you and bring you to someplace nice, someplace where you will be happy."


	14. Dead Man's Party

**Chapter 14: Dead Man's Party**

* * *

Luigi examined himself in front of the full-length mirror. His tuxedo actually fits. The Troopa sewing team had made a few alterations to go by his measurements. It was no longer loose on him, and almost felt a bit snug on his body, but he was still able to move around in it. 

"How do I look?" Wendy stepped from behind the dressing screen. Her new silvery blue gown came all the way down to her ankles, and had plenty of material cut away to reveal the start of her cleavage. It was far from revealing and the trimming on the short and puffy sleeves sparkled in the light.

"You look beautiful," Luigi took one of her hands into his own. The material used for her ballroom gloves had to be strong enough to stand up against her claws, but it felt soft as silk to Luigi. "Did the Troopa sewing team make this, or was this Kammy's work?"

"A little bit of both," she said. She did not wear too much make up, just pink gloss on her lips, a little blue shadow with silver liner on her eyes. Her cheeks and chest sparkled from the little bit of body shimmer she had applied. "I can see they fixed your tuxedo."

"It is more comfortable," he placed a kiss on the back of her hand before he returned to the mirror. He still had to make sure his hair was in place. "It doesn't appear that anything is hanging."

"Nothing that shouldn't be hanging," she adjusted the silver tiara on top of her head. "You don't think this is too much?"

"The tiara?" He shook his head. "Of course not. You are a princess, it fits you."

"My regular necklace would clash, and I can't wear my pearls. Wait, I know what would be perfect."

"Don't have to worry too much about matching," Luigi stared at the cuffs on his suit jacket. The silver cufflinks shone under the light and matched with her gown.

While she searched for a suitable necklace he picked up the brush and ran the bristles through his hair, once he made certain everything was nice and neat, he used a comb and some gel to make sure everything was in place. He took the tiniest dab of hair gel, massaged it into his talons and slicked his mustache back.

"There is no question about it," Wendy returned holding a necklace made out of white beads with light blue droplets. "You are the most handsome reptile in all of Dark Land."

"Thank you," he turned back to the mirror. "I wonder if I should have polished my shell."

"Your shell is very glossy," she held up her necklace. "You don't mind getting the clasp?"

"I don't mind at all," he clipped the clasp at the back of her neck and noticed the segments were carved out of coral. "This is a beautiful necklace, where did you get it?"

"From Tethys."

"I think we are ready, we certainly don't want to be late," he held out his arm for her to take.

* * *

"We just need to give these guys some time to cool," Daisy said as she pulled out another baking sheet covered with cookies from the oven. "Then we can decorate them." 

"We are the super frosting brothers," Orville held up the plastic knife, nearly flinging pink frosting onto the floor.

"Do not wave that knife about," Shivers said. He had half a cantaloupe in one hand and a melon baler in another. "Knives are not toys, they are dangerous."

"This aint a real knife," Orville protested. He floated next to his brother as Henry finished shaking sprinkles onto the previous batch of cookies.

"You still shouldn't play with it," Daisy lectured. She still had to make the punch; so far everything else had been prepared.

"Not to mention it is improper behavior," Shivers added. "Miss Daisy, may I have a word?"

"Yes?" She had already gotten out the cans of fruit juice she wanted to blend together.

"I simply need to ask about the state of the snacks." He pointed to the spread of food that had been laid out on the dining room table. "You have caviar and pate on whole wheat crackers, next to the plate of pizza rolls."

"Is there something wrong with it?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Certainly not," Shivers shook his head. "There just doesn't seem to be any consistency to it. You have the caviar, the melon balls wrapped in porchutto, and the stuffed grape leaves and then you have food like chicken wings, fried cheese sticks and pizza rolls. There is even a dividing line between them, they are all mixed up."

"I don't see anything wrong with mixing up the fun food with the fancy food," she poured the juices into the glass bowl. "There is no theme or any special way to have fun."

The doorbell rang.

"I'll get that," Shivers set the melon down on the counter.

"You stay here and watch the boys," she placed the bottle of seltzer water down. "I want to be the one to greet all the guests." She ran through the halls towards the door, passing through a few of the ghosts.

"Hello," Daisy beamed as she opened the door. "Welcome to-" she froze when she saw who was on the doorstep. Instead of the toads and Yoshi she was face to face with Ludwig von Koopa and a female Koopa she had never seen before.

"Did my brother not tell you he invited us?" Ludwig asked. He was dressed in an eggplant hued shirt and black slacks. The female wore a dress in the same shade of purple.

"No he didn't," Daisy turned her head. "Iggy, your brother is here with his girlfriend."

"I'm his wife," the female said in a tart tone.

"Which one?" Iggy asked.

"Ludwig," she felt a new fear start to rise. "How many did you invite?"

"Just Ludwig and Lemmy, Morty and Roy are a bit uncouth for this event," Iggy approached her, followed by Madam Clairvoya. "Larry is still out of town and Junior is too young."

"Not too mention he would never leave Daddy's side," the female continued to use that superior tone of voice.

"Hey Ludwig, Dru," Iggy waved his fingers. "Where is Lemmy?"

"He's actually going out to meet with his lover," Ludwig said. His eyes widened at the sight of Clairvoya. "These ghosts are more interesting than what we have at the castle."

Daisy remembered herself. "Come on in, the ghosts can show you around. The main event will be in the ballroom; the waiters are setting up the tables for the buffet. Please make yourselves at home."

* * *

Luigi barely heard the guard checking for invites when he handed the two paper slips over. He was still spellbound by the site of not only Nimbusland, but also the palace. Shone with a pearly sheen from the sunlight. The tops of the turrets and the trim were a bright pink, resembling frosting from a cake. 

"Don't just gawk," Wendy grabbed him by the wrist. "It is time to build stronger relations between our two kingdoms."

"I thought you and your father would want to just take over," Luigi said as they once stepped on the strip of bright red carpet. The material was just as soft as the cloudy ground they walked on, just not as fuzzy, or as damp. It was almost like walking barefoot through the grass at morning.

"I prefer to take over through words, play the political chess game," she stopped in front of a golden statue of what may be the king of the cloud people. "May rely on patience, but it is less messy work, and involves less money."

"Unless it involves bribery?" He tried to seek out Mario and Peach amongst the fluffy white faces. There were a few frogs that stood on their hind legs and were dressed as nice as they were.

"There is always that," she winked.

"I'll let you mingle and discuss politics," Luigi slipped away. "We'll meet up once the ball actually begins." Where was Mario? He felt so out of place in the castle. He didn't know anyone. He managed to pick up some snippets of dialogue from the various guests. Some were about the events that were rolling around Nimbusland, some were about the kingdom below the castle, someone was even spreading gossip that Valentina as pregnant with Booster's child.

"Ugh," Luigi shuddered. That was a bit of information he did not need to know. Booster looked like a totem poll with his large mouth and while Valentina had a nice and slender figure, her head was shaped funny, being flat with wide placed eyes.

He wiggled his way through the other guests and paused when he reached five statues. The statue on the right of the middle resembled Mario, with Peach on the right of it. There was also a statue on the far left of Bowser. The other two, Luigi did not recognize. The one in the middle was of a cloud child, most likely, prince Mallow, and the fifth figure looked odd. It resembled a human wearing a cloak, but it's thin arms and legs seemed to be held together by cog like joints. Its face even resembled a wooden puppet.

"Dedicated to the heroes who saved our King and Queen and saved the star road," Luigi read from the plaque.

"I'm almost getting sick of seeing my face on a statue," Mario approached him. He was dressed in a similar tux as Luigi, except his cummerbund was red and not green. He also had ruby studded coat pin. He had also slicked his hair back.

"How many statues do you have?" Luigi asked. He felt a bit of twang of jealously whenever Mario went on another adventure and left him behind, not too mention all the credit and glory Mario had received.

"I think I may have lost count," Mario took a sip of champagne from his glass. "Hey, don't give me that look. You got a few of your own."

"I only have the one," Luigi said, referring to the brass figure of him that stood next to Mario's statue in front of Peach's castle.

"Three," Mario corrected. "Don't forget the Yoshi's built statues of us in Dinosaur Land and I am pretty sure the Waffle kingdom created one of you, of course none of them really look like you anymore."

"They will when Gadd has finished his machine," he noticed a young cloud approach them. By the size it appeared to be an adolescent and he was dressed in a regal jacket, slacks and also wore a cloak. "We are about to get some company."

"Who?" Mario spun around and came face to face with the young cloud. "Hey Mallow."

"Hello Mario," the prince smiled. "Mother and Father are about to start the party."

"I think we are both ready," Mario gestured to Luigi. "Mallow, I want you to meet my little brother."

"Nice to meet you," Luigi gave the cloud prince a polite bow.

"Wow, you are Luigi?" Mallow blinked his dark beady eyes. "Mario has told me a lot about you. He even said you were a better jumper."

"He did?" Luigi felt a new form of admiration for his brother. He never new Mario would have mentioned such words about him.

Mallow nodded. "He didn't mention that you were both different species, but I understand. The frogs at Kero pond adopted me."

"This is because of a spell," Luigi pointed to his face and flicked his tail.

"Are you going to get cured?"

"I'm not certain," Luigi frowned. "Being a Koopa is not a disease."

"I'm sorry," Mallow blinked. "I need to work better on being a diplomat. Maybe when the Mushroom world council meets."

"Your parents are sending you?" Mario asked in surprise. He waited for Mallow to nod. "But you are a little young."

Mallow shrugged. "I heard rumors about King Nougat of Sugar Land is going to be there, and he is only fifteen years old."

"Ladies and gentlemen," a deep voice echoed through out the room like distant thunder. "We are pleased that you all were able to make it." The speaker was a plump cloud person with an amber colored hair and matching handlebar moustache. He was dressed in what appeared to have been pajamas colored in dark blue and light blue stripes and a ruffled collar. "We are graced by the presence of the wonderful heroes who freed us from Valentina and brought our son home, Mario and Peach."

"He asked me for another autograph," Mario whispered.

"I know you don't want to stand around all day and listen to us chat," a female cloud addressed the people. She wore a pink gown with a green, long sleeved robe and a smaller crown with a train. Her hair was the same shade of pink as Mallows. "We should let the festivities begin."

"And this is my cue to find Peach," Mario rubbed his elbow against Luigi's arm. "Wish me luck."

"Wish you luck for what?" Luigi raised his eyebrows.

"You'll see," Mario winked.

"He never tells me anything," Luigi sighed before he turned to Mallow. "Excuse me, I need to find my wife."

* * *

Daisy was pleased with herself. The spread of food looked delicious and she couldn't help but feel proud that she helped prepare half of it. 

"Daisy, can we have a word?" Toad poked her in the shoulder.

"Is something wrong," she watched as Biff floated over to the table's centerpiece to examine the lilies.

"I just want to know why they were invited," Toad pointed at Ludwig and Dru as the two Koopas made their way down to buffet table.

"Iggy was the one who invited them," Daisy placed her hands on her hips. "And the professor gave him the green light."

"Ludwig isn't too bad," Toadette took a sip from her glass of punch. "Dru is rude. She acts like she is better than everyone."

"They are Iggy's family, and he is working hard," she had come across both the young Koopa and Gadd fast asleep at the table. She didn't want to move them, but she did place a blanket across their shoulders and asked Shivers to watch over them.

Dru grabbed one of the cookies and took a bite. "Hmmm, these are fresh baked, you can tell."

The head of Henry popped up from the cookie tray. "Orville and I decorated them." Dru nearly dropped her cookie and leaned against Ludwig.

"I'd pay to see that again," Toadette giggled.

"Attention," Mrs. Whirlinda floated towards the piano, Melody was at. "It is now time to dance."

"Play something smooth for us Melody," Mr. Whirlinda joined his wife. "A good ballroom waltz to start us off."

"And this is my cue to step out," Iggy walked backward towards the other end of the room, only stopping when he felt the chilling presence of Mr. Whirlinda behind him. "Uh hello?"

"What is wrong boy?" The ghost scowled down at him. "You don't like the waltz?"

"The music is nice," Iggy tugged on his collar. "I just don't know how."

"Don't worry," the spirit held up a hand. "We can teach you."

"Well the thing is. I never learned to dance at all."

"No," Mr. Whirlinda's eyes widened. "We will have to fix it." He floated towards his wife. "Ginger, we have a problem. We have a young fellow who doesn't know how to dance."

"He doesn't know how to dance?" Mrs. Whirlinda repeated.

"Not at all," her husband shook his head. "We are going to have to teach him."

"Of course," Ginger nodded. "Fred, He first needs a partner."

"A partner?" Iggy swallowed.

"I'll be your partner," Daisy grabbed his hand.

"Everyone take a partner," Mr. Whirlinda commanded. "This will be a dance lesson for everyone."

"Madame Clairvoya," Gadd turned to the fortuneteller. "You won't mind dancing with an old man?"

"I would be delighted," she placed her transparent hands on top of his.

"Now the first step should be easy," Ginger held up a finger. "You grab each others hands and sway your hips, then take one step to the right side, and then step back, and then a step to the left."

"I feel so awkward," Iggy confessed. "My hands are sweating up a storm."

"Your hands are dry," Daisy reassured. "Then again I am wearing gloves."

"Now twirl your partner, likes this," Mr. Whirlinda spun Ginger out a few inches in front of him without letting go of her hand after a second he pulled her back. "Now you try."

Daisy released one hand and spun around, she quickly spun back to the arms of Iggy. "That wasn't so bad."

"No," Iggy smiled. "It wasn't."

* * *

The music was coming to an end, and that also meant their dance. Luigi drank in the moment, the feeling of Wendy against his chest, her sweet and natural scent, the sounds of her sighs, and the taste of her lips when they kissed. 

"That was nice," Wendy said as soon as the dance as over.

"Being with you is always nice," Luigi brushed his fingers underneath her chin. "I almost wish this night will never end."

"It will end and tomorrow will be even more special."

"What does that mean?" Bowser had also said the day after the ball was going to be a special day, and some of the others in the castle were also talking about it. He even heard Dru say that this time she was not going to spray on some of her blocking mist.

"You will see," Wendy kissed him again.

"Attention," Mario clapped his hands. "Attention everyone." He jumped up, until several heads turned his and Peach's way.

"Mario, what are you doing?" Peach asked.

"I want everyone to see that I am with the most beautiful woman in the world."

"Most beautiful human, maybe," Luigi snorted and placed an arm around Wendy's shoulders.

"This wonderful woman, is the one I want to spend the rest of my life with," Mario lowered himself until he was standing on one knee.

"Is he doing what I think he is doing?" Wendy asked.

"Princess Peach, the fairest of them all," Mario said softly. "Will you do me the honor and make me the luckiest guy in the Mushroom kingdom?" He pulled a small jewelry box out from his pocket and opened it, revealing a tiny sparkling ring.

"I've been waiting for you to ask me this for a long time," Peach smiled. "And I do."

* * *

**A/N**: I have been looking around to see if the Floating Whirlindas were given first names. I couldn't even find any on the Mario Wiki. I named them Ginger and Fred, after another famous dancing pair.

Thank you for all the reviews.


	15. Another Special Event

**Chapter 15: Another Special Event**

* * *

Daisy hummed a small song to her self as she swept up the ballroom floor. She was certain everyone had a great time at her party. She had heard Gadd mention that he felt at least twenty years younger during the festivities. Her guests certainly enjoyed themselves. She knew she had fun, despite the times Dru rolled her eyes and when Iggy accidentally stepped on her toes.

"We want to thank you, your highness," Neville said to her as he and Lydia floated past her. "This was quite the shindig."

"Neville and I haven't dance in years," Lydia embraced her husband. "I could never get him away from his books."

"Thank you," Daisy paused in her sweeping. "I'm glad you had fun, and Lydia, you must tell me how you keep your hair in place after all that swing dancing."

Lydia laughed. "Oh, but that is a family secret." She ran her fingers through her hair. "We need to tuck the boys back in their painting, and I think I shall freshen up before I retire."

"I have almost finished another book," Neville said. "But first the boys," he cupped his hands around his mouth. "Orville, Henry, time to go back into your portrait."

"Do we have to?" Henry floated up to his father. "We behaved."

"You both were perfect little angels," Daisy told him.

"It is far past your portrait time," Lydia told him.

"But we are not sleepy," Orville said as he tried to stifle his yawn. "We want to help, Daisy."

"Yeah," his twin nodded. "We want to help her clean up."

"You two will be offering better help when you are in your portrait," Lydia grabbed Orville by the wrist while Neville caught Henry.

"It's not fair," Orville protested.

"Not fair," Henry yawned.

"The afterlife isn't fair," Neville told his sons. "Now come on, you will get to come out and help again."

Daisy finished sweeping up the garbage into the pile, now all it needs is to be swept into a large can or bag.

"Are you certain you don't need any help?" Toadette asked. She was carrying a plastic wrapped plate, containing the food that Daisy had offered to all her living guests.

"I think we all have it covered," Daisy said as the waiters folded the tablecloths and stacked them together. Shivers and Clairvoya have finished sweeping up their junk into two other piles. "Luggs was able to clean up all the leftovers that nobody else wanted."

"If you ask me, he made a bigger mess," Shivers floated bye. They had released Luggs only after Yoshi left with most of the leftover cookies and both Ludwig and Dru left with their tray. They kept the toads food in a fridge, heavily guarded by Biff.

Daisy chose to ignore him. "Did you guys have fun?"

"We had a blast," Toad said before he yawned. "Thanks for inviting us."

"Are you sure you can make it home? You both are not too tired?"

"We can make it to the palace," Toadette said. "We aint licked yet."

Toad nodded. "I also want to know how the ball went, unless Mario and Peach are too tired."

"Call me in the morning," Daisy said. Once the last of the trash was taken care of, she was going to check on Iggy and the Professor, both were exhausted when the party was over, and once she was certain they were comfortable, she was going to climb into bed herself.

* * *

Mario wasn't sure what the time was. He didn't even know if there was a clock in the guest room he was sleeping in. He just felt the sunlight on his face and knew it was time to get up. He yawned and stretched before he sat on the edge of the bed.

"Not going to be sleeping in the guest room much longer," Mario scratched his chin, his fingernails brushed against the growth that accumulated since last night. He was going to need a shave, and a shower, and put on something more respectable to wear to the breakfast table.

As he went through his daily routine he thought about last night. The ball was a little dull and stiff. King Nimbus introduced him and Peach to all the members of high Nimbus society while he was there. There were so many names; he couldn't keep track of them all. He spent most of the time with Peach, Luigi, and Mallow.

"Engaged man walking," he chuckled as he stepped out of the room and nearly bumped into Toad.

"Sorry," Toad stepped back and nearly came into the wall. "Whoops."

"Are you okay?" Mario asked. "You are not usually this clumsy in the morning."

The retainer smiled sheepishly. "I must have wore myself out dancing last night at the mansion."

"Ah," Mario nearly forgotten about Daisy's party. "So how does the afterlife party?"

"Wonderful, Daisy had it all planned. The food was great; the Whirlindas gave us dance lessons. We played Twister, Charades, and several other games."

"I almost wished I went to that one," he tilted his head until the joints in his neck popped. "It was great seeing Mallow again, but fancy balls like that are kind of boring, although I might have to look forward to more," he noticed the way Toad was staring at him. "I proposed to Peach last night, and she accepted."

"You two are going to get married?" Toad gasped. "You finally popped the question."

"Why do people keep using that word?" Mario raised an eyebrow. "Finally, everyone says that, even Peach."

"Cause she loves you and she has been waiting for a long time," Toad gave him a small slap in the shoulder.

Mario felt like bringing up the fact that she was a princess and he was a plumber, but that was irrelevant. "Just waiting for the right time, and I want to ask you if you would like to be a groomsman."

"I'd be delighted," Toad smiled. "Are you going to ask Luigi to be your best man?"

"Of course," Mario mentally ran through all the possible people he was going to invite. "I'll ask him at breakfast."

"He's here?" Toad asked. His face went blank. "Does that mean Wendy is here?"

"It was pretty late and Peach invited them to spend the night at the castle," Mario said. He was not the biggest fan of any of the Koopas, but she made Luigi happy, she was also an excellent cook. "There are things about her that we don't know about, and anyone who is not from New York and can make a great New York style pizza earns points in my book."

Toad shrugged. "Iggy isn't too bad. He even apologized when he bumped into Toadette and me during the dance lesson, but Ludwig and his wife just looked down on everyone else."

"Ludwig was there?" That was new information. The idea of Bowser's eldest being in the same vicinity as Gadd and the machine that would turn Luigi back to normal was bad news.

"Iggy was the one who invited him."

"I don't like the sound of this," Mario brushed his thumb against his chin. "I need to call the mansion after breakfast."

"Do you really want to wait?" Toad asked.

"I don't want to wake them, if they are as tired as we are," he turned towards the stairs. "Toad, your cap is on backwards."

"Oh," Toad spun his shroom cap until it was facing the right direction.

The two of them were not the last ones to the breakfast table. Luigi was still in bed, but Wendy was there and Mario wasn't certain it was the trick of the light or badly applied makeup, but she appeared to have bright red cheeks.

"Good morning," Toadette piped a cheery call to them.

"Good morning," Mario greeted. "What's for breakfast?"

"Oh Mario," Peach shook her head. "You just proposed to me the night before and now all you can think of is breakfast."

"Yes," Mario nodded. "I'm hungry."

"Good morning," Wendy said weakly. Her breathing was labored.

"I guess you are still tired," Toad said to her. "Although you managed to put on some makeup."

"I'm not wearing any makeup." Wendy sat up.

"But your cheeks," Toadette turned to her. Her dark eyes widened. "It's a darker shade, it was just pink minutes before."

"Are they red?" A look of alarm filled Wendy's eyes.

"Yes," Toadette placed a hand on the Koopa's forehead. "You're burning up."

"Toad, call the doctor," Peach stood up. "Mario, you need to wake Luigi."

"No," Wendy rose to her feet. "I need to get back to our room."

"You need a doctor," Toadette said. "You have a fever and a rash."

"It's not a rash," Wendy said.

"Morning," Luigi greeted them. Mario had no idea he was there. "What's going on?"

"Your wife is sick," Mario turned to face his brother. "We don't know what is wrong, or if she is contagious."

"This isn't contagious," Wendy walked away from them. "And I need to get to our guest room."

"What is going on?" Toad asked.

"Weegie?" Mario had noticed that Luigi wasn't by Wendy's side. He was standing still, eyes glazed over, and his nostrils were twitching. "Are you feeling all right?"

"We have to go," Wendy's pace increased. "Now."

"Wendy, wait," Peach ran up to the female Koopa, but she was already running towards their guest room.

Luigi licked his lips before he ran after his wife.

"Luigi, wait up," Mario called after him.

"I'll go get the doctor," Toadette said.

"Luigi come back here," Mario ran after his brother. He didn't know what to think. He had never come across such a disease before, and he had no clue if Wendy was delirious from the fever or not, and he couldn't figure Luigi out.

Mario had finally caught up to Luigi just outside of the guest room. Wendy had already run inside. "Luigi, what is going on with you?" He grabbed onto his brother's arm.

Luigi turned around and snarled before he swiped his claws at Mario. Once his claws struck flesh he turned back and entered the room. The door closed with a slam, followed by the clicks of the lock.

Mario placed a hand over the bleeding scratches. His brother didn't dig deep, but he had left his mark. "Luigi, what is wrong with you?"

"The doctor is on his way," Toad caught up to him. "Should I bring a bottle of aspirin?"

"No," Mario shook his head. "I'm going to need some antibiotics, and some bandages."

"Why?" Toad stared at the blood seeping through Mario's fingers. "What happened?"

"Luigi got me." Mario closed his eyes. What was wrong with his brother?

* * *

Mario leaned back in the chair. He had removed his shirt and used a blanket to cover up most of his chest and stomach, save for the area on his left breast, right where Luigi had scratched him.

"I hope this wasn't your favorite shirt," Toadette held up the shirt, the claw marks were in plain view.

"I got several more like them," Mario tried not to wince as Toad used a damp cloth to clean up the blood. "Same for my overalls and gloves." He did get blood on the gloves from keeping his hand over the scratches.

"If we wash them immediately, then we won't have to worry about them getting stained." Toadette said.

"He did a number on you," Toad brushed on the antibiotic. The medicine stung and Mario tried not to wince. "Don't move to much."

"There is not much I can do," a toad followed the princess into the room. His cap was covered in brown spots. A pair of square rimmed glasses rested on his face. He had a dark goatee with a gray streak down the center. The white coat that he wore indicated that he was a doctor. "They have the door locked. I cannot really check on the young lady. All I can suggest is offer her some aspirin and an over the counter anti itch cream for the rash."

"Is there anything else we can do?" Peach asked.

"No," the doctor adjusted his glasses. "I have to admit I am not an expert on Koopa medicine or Koopa diseases, and I do not wish to travel to Dark Land to find out."

"We can't ask Bowser," Mario did know of one person to call. "Toad, where is my phone?"

"You are calling Bowser?" Toad gave him a look. "I think only Luigi and Wendy know that number."

"I'm not calling them. I'm calling Gadd."

"Why didn't I think of that?" Toad placed the gauze pad against the scratches and used medical tape to keep it secure.

"I got it," Toadette brought him the phone.

"Thanks," Mario quickly dialed the number. "I just need another shirt." He stared at the tape. He was also going to need something to bite down on when it came time to remove the dressings. There was no doubt the tape was going to remove some of his hairs.

"Hello?" Daisy answered the phone on the other end.

"Hello Daisy, I need to speak to Iggy."

"He and the professor are busy, as usual," Daisy answered.

"Tell him, his sister is sick and Luigi is acting odd."

"I'll be just a moment."

Toad tapped him on the shoulder. "Is there any extra shirts in your room?" He whispered.

"What's going on?" Iggy asked on the other end. "What's wrong with Wendy?"

Mario nodded at Toad. "We are not sure. When Toad and I came down for breakfast her cheeks were bright red, and she has a fever."

"Fever and red cheeks? Uh-oh."

Mario did not like the sound of that. "What is going on? It seems to be affecting Luigi in a strange way. His eyes were like a trance and he ran after her and when I grabbed him-"

"He swiped at you?" Iggy asked. "This might cause some blushing on your end, but Wendy is in season."

"She's in season?" Mario glanced around. The doctor had left and Toadette shrugged, but Peach's eyes widened. "You mean she is ready to be picked from a tree."

"No, not like that, you idiot. Haven't you ever studied anatomy?"

"Actually I haven't," Mario said.

"Okay, this is the time of year when all female Koopas are in season and their mates are driven to a pure carnal desire," he coughed.

"They want to hunt for meat for their wives?"

"I am trying to be discreet," Iggy sighed. "Let's just say that you and I are about to become uncles."

"Uncles?" The only way for him to become an uncle was for Luigi to-" You mean Wendy is in heat?" He heard another cough on the other end. Toadette had turned pink, all over her body. Peach covered her eyes and turned away.

"Yes," Iggy said in a strained tone. "When a female Koopa is in season, the males are driven to a nearly mindless desire to…how do I make this discreet again?"

"Driven to become fathers?" Mario offered.

"That shall cover it," Iggy said. "There are pills and a cover up fragrance spray. Dru has used it the past few years, although she said she is ready to be a mother now."

"How long is this going to last?"

"Three days, while it is going on leave food in baskets outside the door, and fluids in thermos's, make sure to knock. Wendy will understand."

"Thank you," Mario said.

"Your brother will be embarrassed about scratching you," Iggy added. "Try not to make the situation even more awkward."

"I won't, and thanks," Mario hung up. "Nothing to worry about."

"What is going on?" Toad entered the room with a folded up red shirt. "What is wrong with Wendy?"

"Nothing is wrong," Mario said. "It's the Koopa breeding season."

"Oh," Toad looked ill. "Ewww."

"Toad," Toadette glared at him.

"That's my brother," Mario scowled. He felt a rumble in his stomach. "Now that there is nothing to worry about, how about breakfast?"

* * *


	16. Afterglow

Chapter 16: Afterglow

* * *

Luigi stared at the ceiling, bleary eyed and still feeling exhausted, even though he had slept for who knows how long. He semi remembered what had happened the past few days, and what had happened had resulted in his sore legs. He recalled the times he had and Wendy had made love, he couldn't count how many times, but he remembered vague glimpses.

"Good morning my love," Wendy ran the tips of her claws through his hair. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah," Luigi sighed.

"You sound like you are still sleepy."

"My body feels tired," Luigi said. "My mind and eyes are awake." He felt a rumble in his stomach. "And my belly is awake."

"I don't think there will be a basket of goodies waiting for us," Wendy sat up. "Mario had mentioned something about Iggy explaining our season to him."

"Food in a basket," there were vague flashes of a basket and various foods. There were breads, fruits, and cheeses, along with warm meals, more calzones and strombolli, fried chicken, cookies and cakes and other foods he couldn't identify.

"It would be nice to have breakfast at the table this time," Wendy slid out of bed. "We might have to apologize for ruining Peach's bedroom sheets."

"You want to apologize to your enemy?" Luigi sat up, and paused when his vision blurred again.

"She has put up with us the past few days," Wendy explained. "And since she is going to be married to your brother she will be like a sister." Wendy's eyes brightened. "I'll have two sisters, three when Roy proposes." She walked over to his side of the bed. "We should shower before we join them."

Luigi nodded. "We don't want to stink up the kitchen, although even when clean Mario, Gadd, and Daisy don't smell nearly as nice as you."

"Humans are not the best smelling to us," Wendy took his hand. "Daddy can tolerate Peach because she has some toad blood in her."

"I've met King Toadstool's mother," Luigi remembered the warm and kind old toad who resided in the castle.

"I haven't seen her," Wendy brushed her fingers against the top of Luigi's hand. "I have seen that clumsy king when we first arrived her. He was talking with Toadsworth."

"She said something about wanting to see the world before she died."

"Who wouldn't want to do that?" She placed Luigi's hand on her stomach. "Of course it will have to wait until our children are old enough to be on their own."

"Our children," Luigi smiled. He was going to be a father. "I have to tell Mario he is going to be-,"a new memory flashed before his eyes. He could see Mario holding onto his arm, and he struck his own brother with his claws. "I slashed at him." He stared at his talons. "I injured my own brother."

"You didn't mean to." She said in a soft tone. "You were controlled by your instincts. If Mario hadn't touched you then you wouldn't have injured him."

"I don't know how badly I have scratched him," he stared at his claws again. They were as thick as they were long. If his claws had dug in deep then they would have caused some serious damage. "He might have been rushed to the hospital and needed stitches."

"It wasn't serious," she blinked when Luigi gave her look. "Not too serious. Mario delivered most of the food baskets. He even mentioned that one contained a whole round of provolone."

"My favorite kind of cheese," Luigi smiled. He felt a little better tat Mario wasn't seriously injured, but felt even guiltier than earlier.

"He is probably not even expecting a apology."

"I still have to say something," he pulled back the sheets.

"We will at breakfast."

* * *

Luigi went through his morning routine of shower, dressing, combing his hair and brushing his teeth before he and Wendy made their way to the dining hall.

Everyone was at the table, including both Toadsworth and the king, there was something off about the table, there were the bowls of fresh cut fruit and baked goods as usual, except instead of muffins, bagels or croissants they were rolls. There was no coffee pot, or pitchers of orange juice, instead pitchers of iced water, iced tea, and lemonade, and Luigi smelled ground beef, tomato sauce and spices.

"Good morning?" Wendy greeted the group. She sounded as awkward as Luigi felt.

"Good afternoon," Toadette said cheerfully. "Your just in time for lunch."

"Lunch?" Luigi stumbled backward. "You are kidding right?"

"It is noon by my clock," Toadsworth pulled out a small brass pocket watch and held it up. "As you can see where the hands of the clock are pointing. If you woke up at a proper hour then it would still be morning."

"Who knows how much sleep have they gotten during their," Toad paused when everyone blushed. He coughed into his hand. "Activities."

"We did get some sleep," Wendy said. Luigi didn't sleep until he had completely worn himself out and the second he woke up he was ready to go again.

"What kind of activities?" King Toadstool asked. He was trying to butter his roll but instead his buttered knife was crumbling it into bits. "Blasted hard butter, Toadsworth tell the cooks to order the softer kind."

"Wouldn't that be more of a margarine?" Toadsworth raised his bushy eyebrows.

"Yes," the king nodded. "That would be the stuff. Now what kind of activity was going on?"

"It is something we can't mention," Toadette's face turned as pink as her cap.

"I know you like to be an early riser, Weege," Mario decided to change the subject. He was pouring ice water into two glasses. "You will probably wake up earlier tomorrow."

"I guess I'm just shocked," Luigi could not look Mario in the eyes. "I wasn't aware we had slept that long."

"You will feel better after you gotten something to eat," Mario said. "I know I feel better if I eat something when I'm a little down."

"Mario," Luigi stared at his water as he sat down. He might as well get this out now. "I'm sorry about the other day."

"Luigi don't mention it," Mario said. "You just went along with your instincts. It really couldn't have been helped."

"I hurt you. What if it had been serious?"

"It wasn't. I took that scratch as a warning swipe. Lunch is almost ready and I know you like tortellini," Mario smiled at Wendy. "Have you made him that?"

"Not yet," Wendy took a sip from her glass. "Hopefully I can get the recipe from the chefs."

"You need to rebuild your strength," Mario rubbed his elbow against Luigi's. "And Wendy is now eating for two. I want my nephew, or niece to be a strong one."

"Goodness," Toadsworth nearly chocked on his water. "She is expecting? Why haven't I been properly informed?"

"I have only recently found out." Wendy placed her hand on top of Luigi's.

* * *

Larry leaned with his back against the cab of the pickup truck, only half listening to everyone, including Kamron sing some made up ditty about fighting zombies as they continued their drive to the small town of Jazz.

"The zombies try to bite, but Larry has put up a fight," Rusty continued to lead the group. He was the biggest and brawniest member of the group, and more feline than Silhouette. His whole body was covered with reddish brown fur, save for his chest and his face and that was covered with a thin pelt, almost like goose down. His fingers were thicker than Silhouette's and he had the nose of a cat.

"We gotta add more parts now," Tad stuck his head out from the passenger side. He was a toad with a red striped cap. He wore a flannel jacket and had a noticeable gap in his front teeth. "We have to have a line about Kamron and Silhouette."

"We will," Rusty took another sip from his can of beer. "Just get your ugly face back in there." He turned to the only human member of their group. "Jean, your good with words. You make up some lyrics."

"Why does it always gotta be me?" Jean asked. He was a spry and slender figure, fast on his feet. He wore a backwards baseball cap and about three days worth of growth on his chin.

"Cause you are good at it," Rusty belched.

"Should they be in one line together, or in their own separate lines?" Jean asked.

"Separate," Kamron pointed his wand at him.

"Oh and don't forget the ghost girl," Rusty added. "She helped us bunches."

Larry bristled up. How could they just refer to Chloe as the ghost girl, not too mention even entertain the thought of including her in their drunken song?

"No," Silhouette said coldly. "She wouldn't want to be in the song with us."

"How would you know?" Rusty asked.

"Larry knew her when she was alive. She died saving his life."

"Really?" Jean nearly dropped the little pencil in his hand. It was one of those pencils used for golf and bowling games. "Why didn't he say anything earlier when we were fighting?"

"I didn't feel like sharing," Larry said softly. He didn't mind sharing with Kamron and Silhouette. He was what he considered to be friends. He didn't want to mention everything about Chloe to the redneck four.

"Leave him alone," Dwayne shouted. The Snifit was busy driving the truck to actually do anything else. "We are just about to enter the town. Y'all want me to take you to the nearest hotel or just left ya off at the outskirts."

"The outskirts will be fine," Larry called back to him. "You four need to get back home before sunset."

"Aw hells," Rusty took another long gulp from his can. "We flushed most of those ghouls outta town."

"There still might be a few more lingering," Larry said. "You and the crew in the blue jeep are the only ones to defend it."

"He has a point," Jean said.

The truck finally pulled up to a stop at a gas station at the end of town.

"You better hurry and find a nice motel," Dwayne said as the trio climbed out. "I know y'all are itching to go and kill more of them. But you gotta have some place to go and crash for the night."

"Thanks for the ride," Kamron said.

"Drive safe," Silhouette added.

Larry said nothing, just stared the ground. He didn't move until he heard the truck drive away and felt a hand on his shoulder. "I shouldn't allow it to get to me."

"They shouldn't have called her that," Silhouette said. "They were good fighters, but not the brightest or the most sensitive."

"I know," Larry sighed. "I wish we were able to find where these guys were coming from."

"I have a feeling we are getting closer to the Lazarus stone," Silhouette said.

"How do you know?" Kamron asked.

"It's just a feeling."

"We'll go over battle plans later," Larry stared at the entrance of the convenience store. They would know where the closest motel was. "Lets find a place to bunk up for a few nights."

* * *

Dark Land

"Your father is not going to be angry?" Luigi asked as he and Wendy stepped into the fortress. "We were supposed to report back after the ball."

"I think he would understand," Wendy said. "He knows that we had our first breeding."

"Not that part," Luigi felt his face blush. He was still sensitive about talking about it. "I meant the part where we spent the night after the ball at the enemy's castle." He held up his talons and made quotation marks at the word enemy.

"Hmm," she stopped and pressed two fingers against her chin. "That may be a small problem, but I am certain daddy will overlook it." Her pleased smile turned into a frown when Junior sighted them. "Oh great, the brat."

"Hey sis," Junior smiled when he caught sight of them. "You two have been out for a while, like days."

"Scram," Wendy hissed.

"Were you two someplace where you shouldn't be?" his smile grew larger.

"I think that is for Bowser's concern alone," Luigi said. He decided to be civil with the youngest koopaling. He was still a child.

"As future king I should be updated on such matters," Junior folded his arms across his chest.

"Ludwig is going to be king, not you," Wendy glared at him.

"I'm his favorite, so I'm gonna be king."

"I guess Koopa royalty is different," Luigi shrugged. "It most places it is the first born who is first in line to the throne."

"That is the way it is here," Wendy nodded.

"But," Junior's jaw fell. "But I'm gonna tell Daddy you are here and he is going ground you worst that Morton."

"Morton is still grounded?" Luigi was little surprised. "Five days is a little harsh."

"It wasn't because he was being stupid at breakfast," the smile returned to his face. "He wasn't supposed to be online, and Kammy used a spell on his computer to make sure he wasn't using it. Guess what, he did his show thing, and now he is grounded for a full week."

"Mistress Wendy," a Goomba ran up them. "Master Luigi, you have returned, and the news of your return has reached King Bowser."

"Busted," Junior continued to chuckle.

"Does he wish to see the both of us?" Wendy asked.

The Goomba shook his head. "No, just Master Luigi."

Wendy sighed. "Good luck." She kissed Luigi.

"Thanks," Luigi gulped.

* * *

Luigi took a deep breath before he stepped through the double doors into Bowser's throne room. He had already thought of the perfect excuse to use on his father in law, of why they went to Peach's palace after the ball.

"Don't lose it," he swallowed and pushed the two doors open.

The room seemed emptier than the last time. Kamek and Kammy were not there, but there was a line of Troopas waiting to serve their master, or in present case, masters. Roy and Ludwig were also in the room.

"You have returned," Bowser said. He was standing in front of a table with his back turned to Luigi. "You do not have to explain what you and my daughter were doing for three of those days."

"Congrats Weege," Roy held up a fist. "Our first breeding season."

"Wait," Luigi turned to the two brothers. "Did you and Tethys also engage in this season?"

"Yes," Ludwig turned a disappointed eye on Roy. "He has told me he had proposed this morning."

"Congratulations," Luigi ran over to Roy and held out his hand. "It must be marriage season, Mario proposed to Peach at the ball."

"What?" The word was first said by both Roy and Ludwig a same time and repeated by Bowser.

"Mario proposed to Peach," Luigi swallowed. He wished he had never said those words.

"He proposed," Bowser still hadn't moved. The tip of his tail flicked to the left and to the right. "He proposed."

"That is correct," Luigi shrank back. He should have known how Bowser was going to take it.

"So he finally proposed," Bowser said. He was doing something, but the bulk of his shell blocked Luigi's view.

"A lot of people are using that word," Luigi said. Bowser still hadn't looked at him.

"Did she accept?"

"Yes."

Bowser took a deep breath before he reared back his head and roared. "The Beautiful Princess is going to marry him?"

"Father you know she was never interested in you," Ludwig said. "Even you could see that she had feelings for Mario."

"How many times do I have to tell ya she aint worth it, pop?" Roy asked. "She is like one of them fragile dolls. They break when ya breath on em. You want a strong woman."

"A strong woman," Bowser had his hands on the table. "Peach is a strong woman. She will be mine."

"He is hopeless," Ludwig placed his hand over his eyes.

"Why didn't you and Wendy returned after the ball had ended?" Bowser asked

"The ball ended at pretty late hour and Peach invited Wendy and I to her castle," Luigi replied. "Cause she, Mario and the others still thinks we are on their side."

"Oh," Bowser chuckled. "That is clever. What splendid news, the princess and Mario are engaged, my third eldest has proposed, and I'm going to be a grandfather." He spun around revealing two champagne glasses in his hands. "I believe that calls for a celebration." He handed the glasses to Ludwig and Luigi.

"I just thought of something," Ludwig smiled as he examined the glass. "If Peach marries Mario then she would be an in-law of ours, thanks to our new brother here."

"I was already thinking that," Bowser returned with two more glasses and handed one to Roy. "A toast is in order." He held up his glass. "To the ever growing Koopa clan."

"To our wives," Ludwig clinked his glass against his father's.

"To the downfall of the Mushroom Kingdom." Roy added his.

"To the future," Luigi completed the quartet.

* * *


	17. The Machine

**Chapter 17: The Machine**

* * *

_ Dark Land_

Luigi limped towards the courtyard, even after a small massage and a few painkillers he still felt sore after grappling with Ludwig. His hand-to-hand combat skills have improved since the last time he had wrestled with Bowser's eldest son. He had grown to appreciate his new body the past few weeks. He was stronger than before and he could see that his arms have grown a little thicker with muscle during the past few days.

"Are you going to oversee the Troopas while they train?" Ludwig was following him and from the sound of lower claws being dragged over the stone floor, Luigi could tell that Ludwig was equally sore as him.

"I would like to watch them," Luigi nodded. "Make certain they will be in top performance during the next ta-"

"You can cut the crap," Ludwig grabbed his shoulder. "I have known you have never changed sides, nor do you ever plan to." He relaxed his grip when he noticed Luigi's frightened stare. "If I were to inform my father, I would have done so during our first dinner together."

"Why haven't you said anything?" Luigi wasn't certain what the other Koopa's motives were.

"It does not seem feasible," Ludwig shrugged. "I love my father dearly, but he is not the brightest Koopa at times. He was a little too eager to accept you as one of us, perhaps the fact that you are a Koopa had confirmed the thought in his mind."

"I can understand, but aren't you afraid that I will foil your plans in trying to battle the Mushroom Kingdom?"

Ludwig laughed. It was the first time Luigi had heard him laugh and it was rich, almost musical and it made Luigi wonder if the composure could also sing.

"When was the last time he actually tried to go into battle against the kingdom?" Ludwig raised his eyebrows. "He did raise the castle, he has taken over the castle, but when did he actually take over the kingdom?"

"It has been a while," Luigi nodded. "But what about you when you become king?"

"There are other kingdoms to try and take over," Ludwig said. "I can also negotiate and sign treaties to have the borders of Dark Land extended. There is also Grass Land, Ice Land, not to mention Dinosaur Land. My father is a bit obsessed and stubborn when it comes to the Mushroom Kingdom and to Princess Peach."

"I wonder if I broke his heart," Luigi recalled how quiet the Koopa King was after he delivered the announcement of Mario and Peach's engagement.

"He knew it was coming up, it was something he could sense." He stared out the window and watched as several Troopas lined up in a neat row. "Like how I could sense you hadn't changed teams."

"I am curious," Luigi raised his brows. "What else do you know?"

"I know you want to be a human again, but that does not need an educated guess since I have been to the mansion, and Iggy has explained what he and the good professor are up too."

"You are not bothered by that?"

Ludwig shook his head. "I can understand. If I were turned into a human, then I would want to be turned back into my natural form, even with the possible perks of being human."

"I already promised her that nothing would be changed between us if the machine does work."

"I know." Ludwig gave him a pat on the back of the neck.

"Master Luigi," a Paratroopa flew into the area and nearly crashed into the wall. "Whoops."

"Patrick is that you?" Ludwig rolled his eyes. "How many times have I told you to get glasses?"

"All the time sir," the Paratroopa squinted at them. "Luigi is the other one?"

"I'm right here," Luigi waved to he near sighted Paratroopa.

"Iggy is back with his helicopter. He says the device is ready. Wendy is already at the helipad. They told me not to inform their father about Iggy's return. Should I your highness?"

"I'm over here," Ludwig placed himself right in front of Patrick. "Don't tell father anything, and get some glasses."

"Yes sir," Patrick bowed and flew towards the window, barely missing his exit by an inch.

Luigi inhaled. This was what he had been waiting for. "Now is the time."

"Considering how much work my brother has put into the device, I hope it works."

"I have no idea when we will be back," Luigi said.

* * *

"So let us be exact," Luigi said as the copter flew out of the Dark Land border. "What do you mean by everyone?"

"Just your brother, Peach, Toad, Toadette, Yoshi, and Daisy and Professor Gadd of course," Iggy said.

"Everyone wants to come and see Luigi turned back into a human?" Wendy asked. She was seated in the middle and never stopped holding onto Luigi's hand, even with the threat of her bow about to be blown off.

"The professor said he needed some human volunteers," Iggy explained. He kept his hands on the controls and kept his gaze focused straight ahead.

"He never did get that blood from Mario," Luigi rolled his eyes. "Then again I'm one to talk. I still have a fear of Boos."

"I hate spiders," Iggy said, "Wendy's afraid of birds."

"I am not," Wendy glared at her brother. "Not all of them anyway."

"We don't really need the blood," Iggy said. The copter was passing over the Boo woods. "We just need some human volunteers and that includes both Peach and Mario."

"Why would you need so many volunteers?" Wendy asked.

"You will see," Iggy brought the helicopter in for a landing.

* * *

Shivers had welcomed them and lead them to the stairs to the basement. "All of the spirits have been talking non stop about the device. "Everybody has been simply referring to it as the metamorphosis device."

"That isn't the official name," Iggy reminded him.

"Oh sorry, forgot what the official name was," Shivers floated through the door.

"What is the official name for it?" Luigi opened the door for himself and the other Koopas.

"We have dubbed it," Iggy took a deep breath. "Are you ready for this?" He waited until both Luigi and Wendy had nodded. "The Gadd Iggy Species Metamorphosis Chamber Pods, or simply the G.I.S.M.C.P for short."

"Simply?" Wendy gave her brother a look.

Iggy nodded. "Well it is more simple than saying the whole name."

Luigi nearly ran down the steps. He was eager to see the machine, but more eager to see his brother and friends again. He hated having to be sneaky; at least Wendy, Iggy and Ludwig knew the truth.

His eyes were drawn to the silver metal mass in the center of the lab. There were four cylinders like pods connected to a lager pod in the center by metal limbs that were attached, molded into a smooth shape to be precise. The pod in the center was capped with a glossy black dome. The four smaller ones were capped with a candy red domes. Each pod had a v shaped window. Long wire cables were connected to the machine and fed to various ports. The thing cackled and hummed from the electricity.

"Wow," Luigi stared, wide eyed at the machine. "Is this the Species Mega whatever?"

"The Gadd Iggy Species Metamorphosis Chamber Pods," Gadd stepped out from behind the machine. "Fully operational."

"How about making sure it is fully working?" Mario asked from the direction of the laundry room section of the room. Everyone else was there, either seated in the foldout chairs or leaning against the washer and dryer. "I don't want this thing to fritz out and cause my brother to be turned inside out."

"Or worse," Toad added. "He could step out with a fly head, just like in that movie."

"Maybe it would be like the other one," Mario turned to the mushroom retainer. "He could merge with the fly and start loosing his teeth and puke up acid on his food."

"Gross," Toadette closed her eyes and shuddered.

"I don't think I will ever eat another fly again," Yoshi turned a paler shade of green.

"Will you two knock it off?" Peach stared at Mario and Toad with her hands on her hips. "Luigi is probably nervous enough as it is. He is nervous about the machine as it is without you two bringing up horror movies. Not too mention how Daisy and I feel."

"His words are not getting to me," Daisy crossed her arms and shook her head. I wasn't afraid," Luigi felt ice cold fingers trace down his spine. The possibilities of the machine not working hadn't entered his mind before.

"You are also insulting Iggy's and the professor's hard work," Daisy said. She was still wearing the shirt, jeans and lab coat combo. She had her chestnut brown hair pulled into a bun with a few stray locks.

"Not too mention your hard work," Iggy told her. "I don't know how we would have been able to make it with out you to make sure we have food helped clean up."

"It wasn't much," Daisy blushed. "You should thank Shivers as well. He also helped with the refreshments and clean up."

"But he didn't do the paperwork," Iggy took her hands into his.

"I cannot take credit for that," Shivers nodded.

"Why is everyone over there?" Wendy pointed to the laundry area. "Should I be over there?"

"The just wanted to stay out of the way," Gadd explained while opened a panel on one of the pods. "Until we made sure we have everything on line and ready."

"You also told us too," Yoshi said.

"Oh yes," Gadd chuckled. "There is that."

"Wendy you should wait over there with Yoshi and the toads," Iggy pointed to where everyone else stood. "We just need the humans."

"I don't like the sound of this," Mario did not budge and he kept his eyes on the device.

"We told you it won't hurt," Iggy accepted Daisy's hand as he led her to the machine. "There are no needles involved."

"Then how are you going to get my DNA?"

"I thought Daisy already offered her blood," Luigi raised his eyebrows.

"She did, but that was the basis of the study," Gadd opened one of the doors to the pods. "It was to help study, not create the cure."

"How did you create the cure?" Peach stepped inside. "Is that the best way to describe it?"

"I wouldn't call it that at all," Gadd placed a finger under his bottom lip. "That doesn't seem quite scientific, not to mention politically incorrect. Koopas are not diseases."

A muffled snort and cough came from Toad and Yoshi. Luigi glared at his friends and bared his teeth. Toadette gasped and hid behind an equally shocked Toad and Yoshi.

"I know most of the mushroom people are racist against my kind," Iggy made sure none of Daisy's clothing could be caught in the door. "Then again my father and my own past actions have influenced the hate." He shrugged. "I don't think I really care one way or the other." He closed the door. "Is Mario in?"

"No," Mario stood in front of the third pod. "I still don't like this. Has this thing been tested?"

"Not exactly," Gadd held the door open for Mario. "We really don't have anyone to test it on."

"Then how the hell am I going to know if it works or not?" Mario asked.

"Don't you want your brother to be human?" Iggy asked.

"Of course I do," Mario threw up his hands. "I just don't want to be turned into a baked potato."

"This may be the only way," Iggy opened the door on the middle chamber. "Luigi, step in here please."

"I would do it for you," Luigi stepped inside.

"Wouldn't you be too afraid?" Mario asked.

"No bro," Luigi shook his head. "Not for this."

Mario inhaled deep. "Fine," he stepped inside the chamber. "Remember Gadd, I am warning you."

Gadd closed the door behind Mario. "My, my he is touchy."

"He is just concerned," Luigi explained. "There was also the fact you gave the youngest Koopaling a certain paintbrush."

"He is never going to forgive me for that is he?" Gadd asked.

"There might be a little tingling," Iggy explained before he closed the door.

Luigi could hear the muffled voices of Gadd and Iggy engage in some form of tenchobabble. He wished he could hear the others, especially Wendy. He wouldn't have minded hearing Mario continue to complain.

"This is it I guess," He stared at his hands. Soon he will have five fingers again and no longer have orange scales. "Good bye claws." He glanced over his shoulder. "Good bye shell, good bye tail." He liked his tail.

The hum of Luigi's chamber grew louder as it was flooded with an eerie green light. A bar of brighter light slid down over his body and he closed his eyes, anticipating the pain of being transformed. He held his breath when the hum grew even louder and was accompanied by shrill whistles and beeps. Some of those sounds even sounded like various screams.

He opened his eyes when he no longer felt the light, and the sounds died down.

"I didn't feel anything," he stared at his hands. They were still covered in orange scales and ended in sharp white claws. "Those Magikoopas were right. This is permanent." He might as well as let Gadd and Iggy know. "Hey guys," Luigi stepped out of his pod. "I'm sorry, but it didn't-" He was cut of by screams coming from Peach's and Daisy's pod.

"Daisy," Luigi climbed out.

"Princess," Toad ran up to Peach's pod.

"Oh God, Daisy," Iggy was immediately by Daisy's pod and opened the door. "Whoa," he blinked as he stared inside.

"Gadd," Mario growled. "What have I warned you?"

Luigi turned towards Mario's chamber in time to see a short Koopa dressed in the tattered remains of a red shirt and blue overalls pounce on Gadd and grab the poor professor by the collar.

"Mario?" Luigi blinked before he grabbed his brother by his new red shell. "Let him go brother."

"Look what he did to me," Mario snarled and pointed at his new snout. The part with his nostrils was as big and round as Luigi's. Mario's head matched the color of his shell and his horns tore through his hat. "Look what he did to us," his eyes widened. "Peach."

"Don't look at me," Peach had her back turned to them. A pink shell had ripped through the back of her dress and they could see horns poking through her blond hair.

Daisy stood a few feet away. Instead of a bright orange color her skin had covered itself with scales the same shade of brown as Morton. Her head and shell were as yellow as her favorite dress. She still had her figure, and she did appear quite fetching with a tail, maybe that is why Iggy would not stop staring at her.

"Peach," Mario placed a hand on her shoulder. "Please turn around."

"What happened?" Toad asked. "Everyone has been turned into a Koopa."

"I'm not exactly certain," Iggy regained his ability to speak. "We have gone over all the notes and nothing pointed to a possibility of a miscalculation like this." He removed his fogged up glasses and started to clean them.

"A miscalculation?" Mario asked. "We've been turned into reptiles and all you can chalk it up to is a miscalculation." He growled as he pounced on the young Koopa. "How are we certain this isn't your plan all the long? Your family turned my brother into a Koopa nearly a month ago." Smoke was leaking out of the corners of his mouth.

"Leave my brother alone," Wendy grabbed Mario by the arm. "He didn't plan on this."

"Let him go," Peach had grabbed Mario's other arm. "They will fix it."

"Fix it?" Mario's growls deepened and the smoke was getting thicker. "You trust these two to actually fix it?"

"Everyone duck," Luigi pushed Toad to the ground, just in time for a fire ball to exit Mario's mouth and bounce along the floor before Yoshi gobbled it up.

Shivers screamed and flew out of the room.

Mario coughed. "Did I do that?" He blinked.

Luigi nodded. "You are going to have to learn how to control your fire."

"I'm going to have to control my fire." He stared his hands and trembled. "I have to learn how to use my body. I have to learn how to be a Koopa." He grabbed onto Luigi. "I'm a Koopa."

"Mario," Luigi held on to his brother. "Breathe slowly." Mario was trembling.

"Don't let him go into shock," Gadd said.

"Mario," Peach said in her softest and most soothing voice. "Everything is going to be all right, this is just temporary."

"They are going to fix it," Toadette said. "Once they figure out what went wrong, they are going to make things right."

"How long do you think it will take?" Luigi asked. Mario's grip had relaxed and his brother was breathing normally.

"Between a few days and a week."

"I can't go home looking like this," Peach stared at her hands. "Toadsworth is going to have a coronary if he sees me like this."

"I'm certain the professor will allow us all to stay until then," Daisy said.

"Of course they can stay," Gadd nodded. "The spirits won't mind at all."

"Right now, I'm going to find Shivers and ask if he can prep a few beds," Daisy said. "Then I am going to make lunch."

"I'll help," Wendy said. "Luigi likes my cooking."

"Mario also loves it," he stared into the frightened blue eyes of his brother. "Everything will be all right. You just need to sit and have a drink of water."

"They mentioned food?" Mario asked.

"Yes they did," Luigi smiled. If his brother mentions food, then he knows he is going to be all right.

-


	18. Coping and Relaxing

**Chapter 18 : Coping and Relaxing**

* * *

They were able to make it through dinner the night before without any arguments, granted that was because everyone felt a little awkward and did not even say much to anyone. Mario and the princesses did eat slowly at first until they were used to biting and chewing with their snouts and sharp teeth.

Luigi wasn't certain how they are going to make it through breakfast when they woke up the next morning. He already could tell Mario was going to be angry due to Shivers insisting on waking up everyone at an early hour.

"Don't you all sleep the day away," Shivers sang in a cheerful tone as he flew through each and every room that was occupied by one of the guests. "You don't want to miss out on breakfast. There is stuffed French toast with bacon and eggs on the side and plenty of fruit."

"If he wasn't already dead I would kill him," Mario grumbled. He was standing in the doorway of his guestroom, dressed in nothing save for the shell on his back. "Who wakes up at this hour anyway?" He yawned.

"I do," Luigi was already up, showered and dressed when Shivers made his morning announcement. "Not going to wear anything?"

"I'd send Toad to get some clothes," Mario scratched his head between his horns. "But I don't think anything would fit me, besides I don't have to worry about anyone seeing anything."

"As long as you don't get too excited," Luigi reminded him.

"I guess that is one benefit of this form," Mario stared at his claws. "Don't know what else is good about being a Koopa."

"Heightened physical strength," Luigi raised one talon. "You also have heightened senses, protection on the back, claws and fangs, and as you know you can breath fire."

"I won't need an flowers."

"Nope," Luigi gave his brother a light pat on the head. "You don't smell as bad either."

"Excuse me?"

"Don't get mad," Luigi held up his hands in defense. "You couldn't really help it. All humans smell like that. Didn't you notice it on Gadd?"

"Yeah, but I thought it was old man smell."

"Old man smell?" Peach stepped out of her room. She was wearing a larger lavender gown and her blond hair and horns were wrapped up in a towel. "Mario, did you say something rude to the professor again?"

"I didn't tell him he was stinky," Mario turned to face her. He closed his eyes and his nostrils twitched. "Hmm, Peach. You smell better than breakfast." The end of his tail wagged back and forth.

"I did use an apricot scented sugar scrub in the shower," Peach said as Daisy and Wendy emerged from their rooms. "And I borrowed Daisy's lavender scented shampoo and conditioner."

"That isn't exactly it," Luigi placed a hand over his snout as he laughed. Both Peach and Daisy did have nice scents, but they could not compare to Wendy's natural fragrance.

"Are they adapting?" Wendy asked she looked Mario over. "Not wearing anything?"

"Not unless I want to rip it," Mario told her. He backed up against Peach. "You are not checking me out?"

"Relax," Wendy chuckled. "I'm a married woman. Although I do think you are much better looking in this form."

"You two are not going to get jealous?" Mario turned back to the princesses.

"Well I wasn't," Peach addressed him in a teasing tone. "But you did say two. I didn't know you had a crush on Daisy."

"I don't," Mario blushed. "I mean she is pretty in both forms, but I'm not attracted to her in that way."

"Where are you?" Shiver's voice carried through the hall before the ghostly butler appeared before them. "You food is going to get cold if you stand around and-" His eyes widened when he stared at Mario. "Why are you not wearing anything?"

"How many times do I have to say it today?" Mario asked.

"Hopefully you will be able to put something on," Shivers circled around him. "I'm certain I would be able to find something that would fit you."

"Couldn't it wait until after we breakfast?" Mario asked. "I'm starving." He gave his stomach a light pat.

"You don't want it to get cold," Luigi reminded him.

"Of course," Shivers nodded. "Please enjoy your breakfast, but after Mario, you will get dressed.

* * *

It was Daisy who had decided for the girls to step out after breakfast and relax by the creek that was located behind the mansion. It was in part of the woods where there were less trees and had some sunlight stream in.

"I wonder what Shivers has in mind for him," Wendy said as she ran Peach's brush through the princess's blond hair. She loved how soft it felt in her claws, how it shone with each stroke of the brush and felt a little bit of envy.

"I wonder if it is a sheet with a hole cut out for his head," Daisy kneeled at the damp bank and peered into the creek. "I don't think I'm bad looking for a reptile."

"You are both very pretty," Wendy gave Peach's hair a few last strokes with the brush. "Iggy was drooling over the two of you last night."

"He was?" Peach asked. She had her tail curled forward and she was trying to tie on a bow. "He didn't say much during breakfast today."

"He was exhausted," Daisy lowered one toe in the water while closing her eyes. One toe submerged and she opened one eye. She submerged her entire foot and opened both eyes. "I thought it would be freezing."

"Then why did you stick your foot in?" Peach asked. She had tied the knot on the bow.

Daisy shrugged. "I'm not certain." She put her other foot in. "It feels cool, not exactly cold, but cool, and it is autumn."

"I think our skin is stronger," Wendy slid back and admired her work. "I guess we are more resistant to temperature shifts."

"So you were saying, Daisy," Peach let go of her tail and swung it around. "Mario is going to wear a sheet?"

"With a big ole hole in the middle," Daisy giggled. "He would look like a ghost, well a costume ghost."

"Or more like a guy wearing a ghost costume," Peach corrected.

"What do you think?" Daisy had removed her feet from the creek.

"I am certain there is some spare clothing that is just lying around that no one uses," Peach stared into the water. "Thank you, Wendy."

"You don't have to mention it. I have always been envious of both your hair as well as Daisy's." Wendy said. "Dru never lets me play with her hair. Tethys has allowed me to brush it and braid it, but that was it."

"I'm the odd woman out," Daisy said. "I wonder what I should do with my tail? Should I also tie on a bow, or maybe slip on a flower chain."

"They make bangles for tails," Wendy said. "I wore one to the ball."

"I remember that," Peach smiled.

Wendy nodded. It was her favorite tail accessory, and she would only wear it to special events. "They make them in gold, brass, silver, copper, white gold, pink gold, and platinum and Daisy could have a jewels in the shape of a flower on hers."

"That would look pretty," Daisy looked over her shoulder. "Wait, where is my tail." She spun around revealing the stump that used to be her tail. The spikes on her shell had also diminished in size.

"What's wrong with her?" Peach asked.

"I'm not certain," Wendy turned to Peach. The blond princess had earflaps that were growing and forming around her ear holes. Her thick fingers hand grown to the usual slender shape of human fingers. "Your hands."

Peach stared at her hands as a fifth finger grew. "They like human hands."

"You are changing back," Wendy turned toward the mansion. "Mario is changing back, and maybe Luigi." She tried to hide her disappointment. She loved Luigi as a Koopa, but she knew she was still going to love him, and accept him as a human.

* * *

"What did I say?" Luigi ran after his brother. "What did I suggest to you earlier today?"

"Not one word Weege," Mario held the sides of the oversized bathrobe to his chest as he continued to run back to his guest room. He was almost human. He only had his horns, now shortened to little stubs, sharp fingernails and a few patches of scales on his arms and legs.

"If you had called Toad earlier, then he would be here right now with your clothes." Luigi said.

"I said not another word," Mario ran into the room and closed the door behind him.

"Is there a phone in there?" Luigi leaned against the wall next to the door. He wondered why Mario had turned back into a human and he was still a Koopa.

"I have my cell phone," Mario answered. "And yes, for your information I am going to call Toad."

"If he rides on Yoshi then he will be here in a blink of an eye." Luigi placed his hands behind his head. "Shivers is on his way."

"To bring me more clothes?"

"No," Luigi said. "He is going to tell professor Gadd what had happened."

"What about the girls?" Mario asked. "If I turned back into a human, then that means that both Peach and Daisy are human."

"And unlike you they actual had something decent to wear." He inhaled deep when he thought he was able to detect Wendy's scent. He was not imagining it. He could smell Wendy.

"Shivers," Wendy called out. "Luigi."

"We are in the hall of the guest rooms," Luigi called back.

"Where is the med kit?" Wendy asked.

"Med kit?" Luigi ran to the foyer. Peach and Daisy were seated on the floor; both were holding their ankles and staring at their feet. "What had happened?"

"Once we started to change back we headed back here," Peach explained. There were a few visible pink bumps, the size of a head pin on both of her feet. "We didn't make it."

"Ant bites," Daisy explained. "Not to mention pebbles, rocks, burrs and Wendy nearly tripped on a root.

"Are you okay?" Luigi turned to his wife. "What about our egg?"

"I'm fine," Wendy ran a hand over her belly. If there were an egg developing inside he wouldn't be able to tell.

"Iggy and Professor Gadd are on their way up," Shivers floated towards them. A white box with a red cross printed on top was in his arms. "And here is that med kit that you need."

"Thanks Shivers, could you tell Mario that if Toad hasn't left yet, to also bring shoes?" Luigi opened the kit. What they needed was antibiotic medicine and bandages for the cuts, and antihistamine cream for the ant bites. "Are any of you allergic to ants?"

"No," Daisy said. "Just citrus, and only if I eat too much."

"Only to that laundry detergent, Toadsworth likes," Peach said.

"What about splinters?"

"None," Daisy said and winced when Wendy dabbed a little of the medicine on some her cuts.

"I think I have one," Peach held out her hand. "I can get it." Luigi handed her the tweezers.

"Where is Mario?" Wendy had brushed on the last of the medicine and handed the bottle to Luigi.

"He's in his guest room," Luigi brushed medicine on Peach's feet. Most of her cuts were on the bottom of her feet and the bites were on the top of her feet. "Shivers managed to find him a large bathrobe and he is hiding incase the barn doors open up."

"Oh my," Professor Gadd had approached them with the silence of a cat's footfall. "Shivers had mentioned Mario had turned human."

"As you can see," Daisy placed another small bandage on her feet. "We are human again."

"Except for Luigi," Gadd chewed on his bottom lip. "This is hard to explain, considering we don't know exactly what had gone wrong with the machine in the first place. "I did make an interesting discovery. Luigi, do you remember that blood sample you gave me, not the first one of course, but the second one?" He waited for Luigi to nod. Just before dinner Gadd took another blood sample from him."I examined it while Iggy went over the readings. Some of your blood cells were mutating back into a human."

"What does that mean?" Luigi asked.

"It means you will eventually turn back, you just need a little time," Gadd said.

"I'm sorry, Wendy," Luigi said. He had no idea when he was going to change. He did know he was going to use what remaining time he had to appreciate his current form.

"It was fun while it lasted," she shrugged. "You are handsome no matter what your form is, Koopa, or human."

"Thanks," Luigi said. Daisy sighed and smiled. "Is the medicine working?"

"Oh yes," Daisy wiggled her toes. "I don't know if I should be walking barefoot around here."

"You should wait until the medicine has dried before you get up," Gadd said. "Then something to cushion the soles of the feet."

"I know where some spare slippers are," Shivers bowed before he vanished.

"This isn't too serious," Peach helped Luigi with the bandages.

"No, it isn't," Gadd shrugged. "But you should still rest."

"You are almost as bad as Toadsworth," Peach rolled her eyes. "I didn't sprain an ankle or stub a toe, and neither has Daisy."

"Let me help you to the couch, Princess," Luigi grabbed onto the bottle of lotion. "Mario can't be here to carry you."

"Good lad," Gadd gave him a pat on the head. "I'd carry Daisy, but with my age and my back it is next to impossible. I'll send Iggy up."

"Good idea," Wendy smiled. "I am certain my brother would love to be prince charming."

Luigi raised an eyebrow at her. She was implying something. "This is just until the next morning and then you can return to your castle." And then he and Wendy can return home.

* * *

The tang that clung to the smoke of Dark Land had become a familiar and almost welcoming scent to Luigi, as did the warm and hard earth beneath his clawed feet. When he gradually returned to his human form he was going to have to wear shoes again, unless he wanted the soles of his feet to become nothing but blisters and calluses. He would have to adjust to the scent of the air and possibly buy a few bottles of eye drops. There was a reason humans did not live in Dark Land for a reason.

"I almost wish I bought a camera," Wendy and picked several of the wildflowers that grew in Boo woods and put them together into a nice bouquet. The blossoms had started to wilt when the sky had grown thicker.

"A camera?" Luigi kept his eyes on the chain chomps curled up against their wooden blocks. They opened their eyes and the sound of their footsteps and went back to sleep when they saw it was Luigi and Wendy.

"To take a picture of everyone when they were Koopas," Wendy answered. "It would have been fun to look back on those images. I wouldn't give Daddy a picture of Peach, who knows what that would do to him, but he would have gotten a laugh out of Mario."

"I don't think he would ever stop laughing. He might have even wondered if my brother had also changed sides."

Wendy shook her head. "Nah, he would never think something like that, even if Mario had said he was switching sides. There has been bad blood between the two for many years and he would be suspicious."

"I don't know how your father would have seen Daisy," he looked u into the sky when he heard the familiar sound of a Paratroopa set on nosedive. "He never gave her a second look before."

"She wasn't his type, besides I think Iggy has an interest in her." She straightened her back as the Paratroopa, no correct that, as the Parakarry landed in front of her. "How many?"

"A few letters," the Parakarry said. His shell was a deeper shade of blue than the others and instead of goggles he wore sunglasses. "One is for your brother Lemmy, another is for Kammy, and the last two are bills."

"Thank you," Wendy took the letters from his hand. "I don't know if we have any outgoing mail."

"Oh don't worry," the winged Koopa readjusted his mail pouch. "I do drop offs here at the front of the castle." He pointed to one of the towers on the right. "I do my pickups here." He gave her a salute. "I'll see you here tomorrow." With a few beats of his snowy white wings he took to the air again.

"What kind of bills?" Luigi was a little curious. He did have some wealth. There was still a good chunk of money from when he caught all the ghosts. If there was a way for him to help out he would.

"Cable and electric," Wendy placed the flowers under her arm as she looked over the mail. "Kammy's letter is from Larry, and he is in some place called New Sharp, in the nation of Harmony Land."

"I never heard of that place before," Luigi said as they crossed the drawbridge. There were more Chain Chomps, guarding the doorway, the ends of their chains were held by Sledge Brothers.

"It's the country east of the Mushroom World," Wendy explained and handed the mail to Luigi. "It was a country a few centuries ago and then they had a revolution of sorts and now it is run by a democracy."

Dru and Tethys were standing in the foyer, both were clutching onto their designer purses and they seemed to be waiting for someone or something. "See Dru, I told you she would be back soon," Tethys said. She had her flaxen hair done up in two buns on the top of her head.

"Ludwig told me you would have been back about an hour ago," Dru's voice was almost a whine.

"You two are going shopping?" Luigi's tail flicked to the side. He had a feeling they want to include Wendy and was happy they were patient in waiting for her.

"Yes," Tethys nodded. "We are both going to need some new clothes."

"New clothes," Luigi repeated. No matter what the species, women were the same.

"Maternity clothes," Tethys rolled her eyes. "Men don't ever think."

"We also need to get some baby things," Dru added. "Clothes, blankets, strollers, baby carriers, those sort of things."

"I better go and get my purse," Wendy turned to Luigi. "Could you deliver the mail?" She gave her husband a kiss. "I won't be long."

Luigi took that to mean it will be several hours before she returned home. "Have fun." He kissed her back.


	19. Glimpses of the Past

**Chapter 19:** **Glimpses of the Past**

* * *

Luigi could not find Bowser. He had placed the bills on Bowser's throne before he sought out Lemmy. After he had knocked on Lemmy's door three times and when he did not receive an answer he went to seek Kammy.

"Come on in," the elderly Magikoopa said after he had knocked on the door. "I'm just taking care of my little buds."

The room had the scent of burned wax, and the traces of incense, despite the presence of several candles there was an overhead lamp that kept the room bathed in a rosy pink glow. The walls were lined with bookshelves, stuffed with various tomes. There was a desk in one corner, covered with more candles and bottles of who knows what. More bottles were placed on other shelves. The rest of the wall space was covered with pictures of Bowser's children when they were little kids.

"Just set it down on the table," Kammy was leaning over what appeared to have been a trough.

"I have a letter from Larry," Luigi set it down on a round table in the center of the room. It was dressed in a crimson cloth that was covered in stains of various sizes and splotches of melted wax. There were several candles and candleholders and a crystal ball set on round stand, carved out of cherry wood.

"Where is the address?" Kammy asked. She was still leaned over and had what appeared to have been a mixture of ground hamburger meat and worms in her hand.

"New Sharp," Luigi walked around to see what she was doing. "Wendy and the other girls are going baby shopping."

"It will be wonderful having little Koopalings in the castle again." She turned to show him what she was doing. The trough was filled with soil and seven small Piranha plants. Their mouths were wide open, eager for more food. They reminded Luigi of baby birds in a nest.

"These are your plants?"

"My little buds," Kammy placed a handful of minnows into the mouth of the only green one. "This one eats fish, and fish only, except when it comes to old Buzzy shells. Would you like to give them their treat?"

"Sure," Luigi nodded. Kammy handed him a translucent red shell. "I didn't know you had your own baby plants." The seven Piranha plants snapped their mouths shut and turned to him.

"They are not babies," Kammy rubbed her knuckles on the head of the largest one. "When they are still seedlings they are paler color and they do not have their spots. They are also not juveniles. They are well rooted in the soil."

"They are not going to get any bigger?" he kept his eyes on the shell in hands. He did not want to accidentally break it. "I have never seen full grown ones these small before."

"These special little guys are rare and if I hadn't intervened they would have been thrown away." She pointed at the Buzzy shell. "Break that up and give them the pieces. It is like candy to them in both flavor and nutrients. One reason why it is a rare treat."

Luigi pressed against the talons through the shell. "I'm growing to appreciate you more and more. You have a soft spot in your heart."

Kammy blushed. "I have been known to take those no one wanted under my wing, including you and your brother."

"You mentioned if things have gone differently you would have raised us," Luigi placed the broken shell pieces into the mouths of the eager plants, making sure everyone received an equal amount. "What did you mean?"

Kammy frowned and stared out the window. "It was a realm of possibilities that would have led to a similar and yet different outcome. "

"Huh?"

"Some would say that time is etched in stone and you can never change the outcome, no matter what. Prophecy's always come true."

"Are you talking about Dimento's prophecy or the one about when we were born?" Luigi asked.

Kammy sighed. "I'll show you." She pulled her wand from her pocket and went to the table. "How much do you know about your parents?"

"Not much," Luigi shrugged. "Mario and I were raised by our Uncle Tony, Aunt Callie, and our grandmother." He felt a painful twinge in his heart. It had been years since he last seen his relatives. "They had pictures of my mother up until she turned eighteen." He wished he had one of them with him. His mother was beautiful young woman with dark hair and blue eyes. "Her name was Angela. We don't know anything about our father.

"You will see your mother again," Kammy waved the wand over the crystal. White swirls and a glitter like substance appeared in the sphere for a few seconds before everything grew clear.

* * *

_Brooklyn, New York_

Nighttime had reached the city that never slept, most cars were parked in various parts on one street where several buildings were. Few people were walking along the concrete paths, couples held on to each other, and not a single child was seen.

"I don't care!" A petite teenage girl ran out from one apartment. "I don't care if you want me close, I've been accepted to Berkley."

"Who is going to pay for it?" A portly woman followed her. "It is not going to be me and it is not going to be your father."

"Don't you care about my education?" The girl placed her hand on her hips. "This is my future."

"We don't want you to go to California," the girl's mother said. "The people out there are not right in the head."

"Why must you be so judgmental?"

"We just want you to be close."

"You don't want me to go anywhere," the girl turned around and continued to walk.

"Where do you think you are going?"

"Away from here," she picked up her pace.

"Angela Mario," her mother placed her hands against her mouth. "You run off now, don't even think of returning here."

* * *

Fog filled the area turning everything white for a few seconds. Once it was thin the image had changed to a construction site.

Angela was running away from three men dressed in mostly denim, jeans and jackets with chains. The tallest of the three wore wool knit cap on his head. The shortest had long greasy hair that appeared to have gone weeks without coming in contact with a shampoo and water, the third man was plump and had a gold stud in his nose.

"Don't run," the tallest shouted revealing crooked and yellow teeth. "We know you want us."

"She's just playing hard to get," the short man said. "She is only setting us up with this game, wants to make it fun for us."

"It aint fun," the plump man said between gasps of air.

"Would be if yous quit takin' the sub to Magnolia," Shorty said to his friends.

Tears were streaming down Angela's face. She looked around and could not find anyplace to hide. Her chest hurt from all the running, yet she dared not stop. She had no idea what those three were going to do to her. She slipped into the construction site.

"Not going to hide here sweetheart," the tall guy said as he and his friends followed after him.

Angela continued to run; she dodged into areas, trying to see they would be fitting hiding places. The last place she crawled into was a dark green pipe.

"Dumb broad thinks she can hide in there," Tall man said. "C'mon."

"Uh-uh," the fatter man stood back. "There is no way in hell am I going to go in there."

"Why?" the leader smirked. "Are you scared or something?"

"No," the short man laughed. "Jayce is too fat."

"Whateva," the tall man rolled his eyes. "Bug and I will pull that sweet ass out our selves."

* * *

The scene changed again to reveal a large pipe jutting out from the side of a grassy green hill next to a forest. Angela crawled out and continued to run, only stopping a few seconds later when she realized where she was.

"She's finally tired," Bug crawled out of the pipe. His feet struck the ground and Angela continued on her way. "There she goes again…into…the woods."

"Whadya mean woods?" The taller man climbed out. "There aint no woods around here." He slid out of the pipe and stared at the woods. "Holy shit."

"Yeah," Bug turned around and climbed back into the pipe.

"Where are you going?" The taller man asked.

"Back home," Bug answered.

"But the girl."

"Forget her, Needles. I aint waiting for some White Queen or wolves to start coming after me."

The leader just stared at him in disgust before he resumed his chase.

Angela plunged ahead into the woods. Her sobs and gags of air combined to create a choking and snorting sound. She leaned against a tree and tried to catch her breath.

"There you are," Needles grabbed her arm from behind. "Can't you see all the trouble you have caused?"

"Leave me alone," Angela tried to wrench herself away.

"Not until after I had some fun," He pushed her towards the ground.

"She said let her go," a bright red Yoshi leaped in from the shadow, one kick from his foot caught the tall man in the chest and sent him flying. "Easy Crimson," the man in the saddle said.

"Shit," the tall man coughed. He was clutching his side.

"You are deep in it," the man in the saddle glared at the tall man. He was a tall man with brown hair combed neatly back and a round prominent nose. He was dressed in black jacket trimmed in gold, a black shirt, and a pair of tan pants." He slid out of the Yoshi's saddle and removed a fire flower from his pocket. "I suggest you leave."

"What the hell is that?" the tall man sat up. "Is that a dinosaur? There is no way that thing is real."

"I am as real as you are," the Yoshi snarled.

"Are you going to leave?" The stranger had placed his hand on the top of the flower and replaced the plant back in his pocket. "Or am I going to make you?" A red flame appeared on his outstretched palm.

"Shit!" Needles rose to his feet. "Bug was right, this place is messed up." He took off.

The flame diminished in the stranger's hand and he turned to Angela. "Are you okay miss?"

"I," Angela stared at the Yoshi for the longest time before she fainted, and was caught by her mysterious rescuer.

* * *

"I cannot believe you gave them those names," the same man was leading Angela from a car to a small and modest house, both were carrying a newborn infant.

"You don't like them?" Angela asked. She stared down at her baby.

"Luigi is a good name," her husband said. He had grown a small beard since the last scene. The small paunch on his stomach had also grown, making him appear as plump as Mario. "But why did you name our first born after your family name?"

A man shrouded in a deep blue cloak and shadow leapt down from the roof. "Many have more problems going for them, than what they have named their children."

"Who are you," Luigi's father demanded.

"Lucio," Angela spoke in a quiet tone. "Something is wrong, Crimson should have alerted us as soon as we stepped out of the car."

"Crimson was his name?" The shadowed man reached for his cowl with a bony white hand, ending in long curved fingernails. "He was a nice meal." He pulled back the cowl. Dark hair hung limply around an angular white face with pronounced cheekbones. His ears were long and pointy, there was a chunk missing from his right one and few puncture wounds by the side of his head. His orchid eyes were narrowed as he licked the blood off his lips and fangs. "I have never drained a Yoshi before, they have an interesting flavor."

"Crimson," Angela's gasp woke up the sleeping Mario. The infant's cry upset Luigi and set him to cry in a louder bawl.

"What have you done?" Lucio growled.

"That should be the least of your concern," the creature smiled as he eyed the twins. "One of them is in my master's prophecy. I do not know which one."

"Lucio, Angela," the rustle of feathers was heard and a large white stork flew overhead.

"Infernal bird," the monster snarled. "I shall deal with it later."

"You are correct," Lucio handed Luigi over to Angela. "You will have to deal with me." He struck the stranger in the chin. The monster pounced on him, pinning him against the side of the house.

"No," the stork dove down, his sharp beak poised to strike on top of the vampire's head. The murderer reached up to swipe at the stork, but the bird dodged his grasp.

"Pickles over here," Angela called to him. "I want you to take the boys to safety."

"Where?" The stork flew to her.

"Into the warp pipe on the other side of Boo woods," Angela said. "There is a city on the other side I have family there. I may not be welcome back, but they should be."

"I tried to save Crimson," Pickles flapped his wings. "He knocked me out."

"You got a good peck on his head," she handed both Mario and Luigi to the stork, go now."

* * *

The crystal ball clouded over once again.

"That bird was noble, but a homing pigeon it was not," Kammy said in a slow tone. Luigi hadn't noticed she was holding onto his hands. "He got lost on the way and flew over the island of Yoshis."

"Who was that guy?" Luigi asked. Just the sight of the monster's face was enough to send a shiver down his spine. "Who was that vampire?"

"I do not know," Kammy yawned. "That was why you were both carried by a stork when Kamek had tried to capture you both, and now I will show you if he had succeeded."

"He would have killed us," Luigi closed his eyes.

"If his plans were to kill you then you would have died many years ago," she squeezed his hands harder. "Have you ever asked your self why he never killed you when he had captured both you and Pickles?"

Luigi tilted his head to the side. He had thought about it when he was told of the story, but the reason never came to his mind.

"Here is the reason," she said as the crystal came to life once again and a new image appeared.

* * *

"Can Snowy count to three," a much younger Kammy cooed to the white bat on her hand. "I know you can Snowy." The bat squeaked three times. "I knew you could do it."

The wails of infants were heard outside the door, nearly muffling out Kamek's grumbles. "We have returned, after I did all the hard work." The door opened and Kamek entered, followed by his toadies carrying the crying Mario and Luigi. "Where do you want the brats?"

"Put them on the blanket." She pointed to the white blanket that was spread out on the floor. There were a few other blankets folded into neat stacks on one corner.

"Do you have any idea of the trouble I gone through to get them?" Kamek glared at her. He had his hand against his back.

"You were the one who wanted to take them," Kammy held up her hand and Snowy flew to one of the wooden perches at the corner of her room. "You were the one who said they would bring the downfall of the prince in the future."

"Yeah," Kamek nodded while the toadies set the two infants down on the blanket. "Why can't I kill em?"

"Because of what I have seen," Kammy watched as Snowy finished his rest and flew over to the infants. "Two different forces will come from the sky and bring doom to our prince and only these boys will save him. A third from another world seeks to destroy all, and one brother will be the true savior."

"Fine, lets get this done," he pointed his wand at the two brothers, by now they had stopped crying and were trying to grab onto Snowy.

"We have to be in sync with each other before we can perform the spell," Kammy and removed her wand. "Close your eyes and try to focus."

The Two Magikoopas held each other's hands and closed their eyes. They did not move for five whole minutes. They pointed their wants at the twins. "Two brothers who have grand destinies, two brothers who were born from human, now shall be of a reptile species, they shall grow to be Koopa men."

Light rained down on the twins and encased them in the glow. Their screams were shriller and louder than before, even overpowering the sounds of bones snapping and flesh reshaping. The energy faded around the twins, now as Koopa hatchlings, one with a red shell and matching head and the other with a green shell and head.

"You didn't tell me it was going to be painful for them," Kammy snarled at Kamek.

"I did what you asked," Kamek grunted. "Now I have to go and face the king, he is going to want to know why Prince Bowser is upset."

Kammy turned to the Toadies. "There is milk in a pot on the stove, fill two bottles with it and bring it to me." She didn't even wait until the others had left the room before she ran over to the two crying hatchlings. "I'm sorry it hurt," she cooed. "Mommy will make it better."

* * *

"I would have raised you two as my own," Kammy explained as various images appeared in the crystal. There was a scene of Kammy changing the hatchling's diapers, giving them baths, spoon-feeding them in high chairs, her kissing their scraped knees before she placed on their bandages. The two brothers grew. Kammy lead them around the castle by their hands. She stared at them as they stood in front of a broken vase as they pointed at each other. She watched as the boys played soccer with Bowser.

"Although in this alternate version things turned out the same," the crystal divided into two images, one of an adult Mario Koopa betraying Bowser and carrying Peach back to the Mushroom kingdom and the other had Luigi and Wendy getting married.

"Pickles didn't bring us to Brooklyn," Luigi recalled one of his earliest memories. He wasn't quite three and he was on a cloud, flying over the city.

"The Yoshis helped the stork make it back to the Mushroom Kingdom," Kammy spoke even slower than before. She had to take deep breaths in between. "You were still with your parents when the Shroobs invaded. All I know it was some time after that."

"Can you show me?" Luigi released her hands. "What happened to our parents?"

"Can't show now," her hands were shaking. "I need to rest, long visions drain me, especially at this age.

"Maybe later?" He had to find out and tell Mario.

"Maybe, after a nap and a warm cup of tea."

"Let me help you to your bed," Luigi held out an arm. "And I'll ask someone to brew you a pot of tea."

* * *

**A/N:**

I want to do something that would explain how Mario and Luigi ended up in Brooklyn. Instead I have their mother cross from Brooklyn into the Mushroom Kingdom.

Mia's words to Angela were inspired by a Pat Benatar video, classic 80's videos are fun to watch and are on Youtube.

Pickles the stork with Ryoga's sense of direction, yeah I know they made it look like the storks bring babies because of the game's rating, but this fic isn't rated the same, and I had to wonder why Kamek didn't just kill Luigi when he already had him.

Thanks for all the reviews.


	20. History Revisted

**Chapter 20: History Revisited**

* * *

Kammy's room was divided into two parts, one was a study for her magic, and the other was an actual bedroom with a small single bed, another bookcase, a small TV on its own stand and a nightstand with a lamp.

"Thank you dear," Kammy hobbled over to her bed. "I am going to need a small nap before we can continue. There was a time when I did a marathon crystal ball reading, and I didn't feel tired in the least bit of sense." She yawned. "Then again I drank a lot of coffee in the past, but oh to be that young again."

Luigi pulled the knit blanket across Kammy's chest. The Koopa witch may only need a nap, but Luigi wanted to make certain that she was nice and comfortable. His grandmother always made certain she was covered when she was taking a nap and mentioned that it was often hard for old people to stay warm.

"Grandma said she didn't want my mother to know the truth," he recalled the story his grandmother told him and Mario when they were ten and both Uncle Tony and Aunt Callie had revealed they were not their parents, but their aunt and uncle. "Grandpa lost his job the week before and didn't want his children to know, he wanted his daughter to go to a nearby community college because it would have been cheaper, or for her to wait a while until he got a new job. She could have found a job in the meantime as well."

There were several questions he still needed answers too. He knew he and Mario were still with their parents about two years later when the Shroobs came. What was the event that had caused their mother to send them to Brooklyn, and how did it involve the cloud. He was also curious in why the Mario Koopa in the alternative world decided to go against his leader and rescue Peach. He felt like he shouldn't ask about what had happened to Snowy. Bats did not live that long and it was possible he died of old age.

Four of the miniature Piranha plants were asleep, their heads rested against the soil and leafy stems covered the tops of their heads. The green one was staring at the direction of one of the candles. Its thick lips were twitching for a few seconds before it spat out a tiny fireball and sent it towards the direction of the wick.

"You are a Venus fire trap," Luigi said before he licked his claws and used them to snuff out the flame. "Are you the only one?"

The green plant nodded. One of the red ones shook its leaves violently

"Do you have a trick?" Luigi was certain that the minis were made up of a vast variety of Piranha plants.

One of the red ones tilted its head back and opened its mouth. A tiny spiked ball, no bigger than a marble shot straight up and was held in the air by the plant blowing at it.

"Ah, a Ptooie," Luigi said once the small plant had swallowed the marble. "I'll be back in a few minutes." He had to go and brew some tea for Kammy.

* * *

He was strong and the tray containing the pot of tea and the cup was not awkward or bulky. Luigi had no reason why the two Toadies that followed him to the kitchen insisted on carrying the tray for him when he was perfectly capable of doing it himself.

"Why won't you let me carry it?" Luigi opened the door back to Kammy's room. He never found out if Bowser had gotten to the bills yet. He did manage to find Lemmy and gave him his letter. Lemmy seemed a little nervous to receive it for some reason.

"You shouldn't burden yourself with such a task," one of the two Toadies said.

"It isn't a burden," Luigi sighed. He was not going to get away with it. "Hello little ones," he greeted Kammy's buds in a soothing voice. "Is Kammy awake from her nap?" He waited for the plants to nod before he turned to the toadies. "She is awake, but her tray down on the nightstand by her bed." He picked up the still unopened letter from the table and followed after the minions.

"I smell hibiscus," Kammy was still lying down on the bed. "With orange and lemon."

"It was part of the pack of energy tea," Luigi explained as the toadies set the tray down, and were careful to avoid Kammy's glasses. "It also has Ginseng for energy."

"That sounds perfect," Kammy reached for her glasses and sat up. "I cannot drink much caffeine these days, not with my stomach."

"I was hoping to avoid stuff like that," Luigi smiled weakly. He handed her the letter and fluffed up one of the pillows behind her head.

"Why would you think to avoid that?" Kammy used a claw to open the top of the letter.

"I'm stronger in several other places," Luigi ignored the toadies and poured the tea into the cup. "I have a stronger hide, and I can breath fire."

"Tsh," Kammy clucked her tongue at him. "We are stronger than toads and humans, but we are not invincible or immortal, and the draconian Koopas are stronger than the other species."

"How many cubes of sugar would you like?" Luigi asked.

"One cube would be enough," she pulled the letter from the envelope. "You Toadies are dismissed."

Luigi placed the cube in the cup. "How is he?"

"He is doing well," Kammy read from the letter. "He, Kamron, and Silhouette have made plenty of progress. They have a feeling the source of the problem is in the city of Symphony."

"Who is Silhouette?" Luigi handed her the cup. He remembered Kammy suggesting Kamron when Larry had first left for his adventure.

"A young girl the boys have met," Kammy explained. "He describes her as clever, pretty and a skilled fighter."

"What is this problem?" Luigi asked. "Or can you not say?"

"He asked me not to reveal it to anyone," Kammy said before she took a sip from her tea. "And knowing you, if I did tell you, then you would go and make your way to catch up with him."

"And he knew you would have told," Luigi admired her way to keep a promise and a secret. "But what if he was in serious danger."

Kammy took another sip before she answered. "My wand will blink several times. I have told Kamron to inform me if they are in grave danger, for him to call me and I will send help."

Luigi didn't know when she would be rested and ready, and he didn't want to just outright and ask her. He stared out the window and watched as several Paratroopas were flying formation drills.

"Is there something on your mind?" Kammy had noticed how he was just standing there. "Would you care for a cup?"

"I'm not thirsty," if he were he would have brought a cup. He needed to find something to talk about, at least until she had finished her first cup. "I didn't know you watched TV," he pointed to the small screen.

"I need my soaps," Kammy smiled. "That is not want you want to ask me about, now is it." Luigi shook his head. "No, you want to know more about your mother."

"I still don't know about that vampire creature, or how my parents defeated it, or why we were sent away to Brooklyn, but I wanted to make certain you were ready, and healthy."

"We can look while I'm in bed," Kammy set her cup down. "My crystal works no matter where it is."

"I'll be right back," Luigi ran back into the other room, grabbed the cloudy white ball from the stand and ran back into the bedroom. "Where would you like it?"

"Hand it to me," Kammy held out her hands and accepted the sphere. "Sit at the edge of the bed." She waited for Luigi to sit down before she set the ball on her lap. "Now give me your hands."

Luigi grabbed onto her hands, they were warm from holding the cup and were no longer shaking. He thought of his mother and stared into the crystal as the same cloudy swirls and glitter appeared.

* * *

The image of Lucio and Angela's house returned. Pickles was high in the sky and carrying the boys away to what he thought was the right the right direction.

"Get away," Angela jumped up into the air and came crashing down on the top of the vampire's head. Her feet struck the top of his skull and sent him reeling away from Lucio.

Lucio stepped away from the wall. Purple marks from where the vampire held him had formed on his neck. "Angela," he was able to gasp once he had caught his breath. "Angela."

"Where are they?" the shadowy figure demanded. "Where are the children?"

"Where you will never find them," Angela was poised to jump again.

The vampire pounced forward, his claws stretched out. He was able to grab her ankle as she tried to jump over him. His claws sank into her skin and sent her stumbling forward.

"You will not touch her," Lucio pounced on the vampire. Moonlight glinted off the silver dagger in his hand. He plunged the blade into the monster's shoulder.

The vampire lashed at him again, this time his claws scratched against his arm. "Don't think I am unprepared to face your weapons." A hammer flew through the air and landed on his head. He looked up. "Who dares to interfere?"

"We do," two Hammer bros lead a mob of toads; all were armed with various weapons.

* * *

The crystal became opaque once again and Kammy released her hold on Luigi's hands and leaned back against the pillows.

"Was that too much?" Luigi asked. He deducted what had happened afterwards. His parents with the help of the two Hammer Bros and the toads were able to kill the vampire and not long after, Pickles returned with them.

"No," Kammy said before she took a deep breath. "It was a small vision. I do need to finish my tea." She grabbed her cup and took a long drink. "We will see more, let me know when you had seen enough." She set the empty cup down and held out her hands.

"No," Luigi shook his head when he took her hands again. "We will stop when you have exhausted yourself, and try again tomorrow."

"I think I will be able to last for a while with this tea."

* * *

The scene was outside in the garden of Peach's castle. A young Lakitu with his hair styled in a purple Mohawk was resting on his cloud. He was looking around with a nervous expression on his face.

Angela ran outside, carrying a backpack on her back and Mario when he was a toddler in her arms.

"Are you certain about this?" Lucio followed after her, carrying another pack and Luigi. "We may never see them again."

"It is for the best," Angela handed her older son to the Lakitu. "Thank you for doing this Lysander."

"No problem Mrs. Segali," Lysander accepted Mario into his arms. His cloud seemed to grow a little longer. "I'll make sure the little guys get to the place safe and sound." He pushed down on one part of the cloud and a strange opening popped up in the back. "Just put it all in the trunk."

"Your own family won't take you back," Lucio scowled. "What makes you think they will take the boys?"

"Because they will," Angela helped Lysander strap Mario in.

"That city is full of crime," Lucio continued to protest. "Don't you remember those guys who were chasing you?"

"Even they were afraid of here," Angela sighed. "We have thieves, arsonists, rapists, and murderers here as well. We also have young dragon like turtles trying to kidnap the princess, turtle wizards who made more than one attempt to take our boys, purple alien mushrooms that tried to invade and vampires, zombies and all sorts of monsters who want to kill us and our babies because of some prophecy."

"How will we see them again?" Lucio stared into Luigi's eyes. "How will they be the heroes when they are in that city?"

"Maybe someday when they are big and strong enough they will return," Angela took Luigi from her husband's arms. "After Nosferus is defeated we will come back for them."

"Want daddy," Luigi cried and reached out for his father.

"He is your son," Angela held Luigi close to her chest. "You have to be a brave boy for mommy and daddy. You are going on a trip to see grandma."

"Gwanma?" Luigi asked. "Who dat?"

"She is my mommy," Angela said softly. She frowned from the last memory of her mother. "You will both be good boys for her." She handed Luigi over to Lysander as Lucio placed Luigi's pack into the trunk.

* * *

The scene had changed from day to night. Angela was in the sky kept aloft by the P wing. She would have appeared much more serene if she did not have a furious intent look in her eyes, her hair full of wild tangles, and a bleeding cut on her upper lip.

She was chasing after several dark creatures that looked like a cross between vultures and old hags. Greasy and molting wings kept aloft feathered and dirty bodies. The tops of each wing had frail and gnarled looking hands. Long necks ended in withered faces that were crowned with tangles of stringy hair.

Angela was carrying a bag filled with Koopa shells. She removed one and threw it at one of the creatures. The shell struck it in the back of the head. She threw a few more and they all hit their targets with pure accuracy.

The wings on her back started to flicker and she dove to the ground where Lucio was hurling fireballs at several more shadowy vampires, and corpses shuffling along the ground.

The most frightening creature was beast the size of a house. It was covered with dark shaggy black fur, thick legs ended in sharp claws. It's tail was covered in several spines. The beast had four long necks, ending in wolf like heads.

As soon as Angela landed, Lucio tossed her another fire flower, before he threw several more fireballs at the monster in front of him.

Angela grabbed the plant, blossom first and formed a flame in her other hand. She sent another barrage of fireballs at both the bird women and the zombies.

Lucio continued to send fireballs at the monster. The flames singed the beasts fur, leaving black patches, but there was no serious damage, only when the fireballs had struck one of the wolf heads did the beast reel back in pain.

There were a handful of toads fighting, several were also using fireballs, and others were using shotguns that fired salt rock. Even though they took out two or three of the monster each their numbers were slowly being eliminated.

Several of the zombies overpowered Angela. "Lucio," she cried out.

"Angela!" Lucio spun around and threw several fireballs at the zombies, he didn't stop until she was free from the zombies and was able to fend for herself.

"Foolish move," a cold voice cut through the night as a giant paw lashed out and struck on Lucio and sent him sprawling to the ground.

"Lucio," Angela continued to fight around her, until she was overpowered.

"Why do humans and toads continue to fight," the voice continued as a large bat landed in front of the wolf monster. "When you know the odds are against you?" The bat dissolved into shadow and grew formed into a tall vampire. His reddish brown hair was styled in neat curls and kept put of his eyes by a black leather band with a blood red jewel in the center.

"Nosferus," Lucio hissed out the name.

"That is lord Nosferus," the vampire frowned. He would have been considered quite handsome despite his corpse like parlor. He was dressed in a deep blue shirt with black slacks and a black jacket lined red. The black cloak was also lined in red. "You don't have your friends and relatives to help you this time." He surveyed the area around him. "Well not anymore."

"More will come," Lucio said.

"Perhaps," Nosferus raised a finger. "But it will be too late for the two of you." He turned to Angela. "But then again I am feeling generous tonight. Angela, I am willing to spare your lives if you tell me where your sons are."

"We will never tell you," Lucio said before monster's grip increased.

"I am not asking you," he sauntered towards Angela. "Now Angela, tell me where your boys are."

"I will never tell you," Angela glared.

Nosferus frowned. "You really do not have much of a choice. Either you tell me the location of your sons, or I will kill your husband."

"Tell them nothing," Lucio managed to choke out before the monster squeezed his throat.

"You don't really have much of an option left," the vampire stroked Angela's chin. "You could always have more children."

"They are safe," Angela said. "You will never find them."

"Where are they?" Nosferus repeated.

"With my mother."

"Good," Nosferus's smile grew larger. "Now where does your mother live?"

"I will not tell you."

"Then so be it," Nosferus snapped his fingers.

The monster twisted his paw and bent Lucio's head at an odd angle, creating a snap.

"Lucio!" Angela shouted. Tears streamed out of the corners of her eyes.

* * *

The crystal became thick once more and Kammy released her hold. "I need more tea," her voice was weak.

"Let me get it for you," Luigi slipped off the bed. He poured another cup and placed in another sugar cube. He could not shake the image of his father, struggling in the paws in that monster and Nosferus trying to force his mother to reveal their location. "He killed him." Luigi did not feel tears despite the grief. He knew it was because he barely knew is his father. "He killed my father, our father." He turned back to Kammy.

She was sound asleep, snoring in her bed. Luigi retrieved the crystal before it could fall to the ground. He had worn the poor witch out and she had revealed so much. He might ask her again tomorrow; then again he should probably wait until he knew she was good and healthy.

"Sleep well," Luigi said before he left her room.

* * *

**A/N:**

Since Angela's maiden name was Mario then Lucio and the twins would have a different last name. Mario and Luigi were raised in the Mario Household in Brooklyn, always believing their last name was actually Mario.

I chose Segali because it was the last name of the legendary Mario Segali who was the landlord of the building Nintendo was renting back in 1981. The legend has it that Mr. Segali burst in during a meeting to demand rent, and that meeting was what name to give to "Jumpman."


	21. The Morton Show

**Chapter 21: The Morton Show**

* * *

_New Sharpe_

Larry spat out a mixture of saliva, dirt and blood. The battles were getting worse. The zombies and spooks were greater in number than any other town and there was a new threat. Creatures that were part old woman and part vulture were swooping down on the trio, clawing at them with their hook like talons. Silhouette called them harpies. The name seemed to fit.

"I'm out of gas," Kamron collapsed on top of one of tombstones. His hat was on the moist earth, his shock of orangish red hair hung over. "Go on without me."

"Kamron," Larry set his launcher down and leaned against it. There was not a sign of a ghoul in the sky, no ghost, nor were there any zombies on the ground.

"Can't go on," Kamron let go of his wand.

"Will you stop with the theatrics?" Larry asked. Now was not the time or place for his wizard to be a drama queen.

"I'm not acting," Kamron said. "I really can't move."

"We got rid of em," Larry's words were nearly drowned out by the crash of thunder. "Look around. There is nothing left and I think this is the last cemetery."

"Good," the young magikoopa rolled off the tombstone. "Where is Silhouette?"

"She said she was going to see if there was anything to fight at that crypt," Larry pointed to one of the few crypts that were in the cemetery. "And she hasn't come back yet."

A scream cut through the air, sending a chill down Larry's spine. It was the scream of a young woman, and the end sounded like a cat's yowl.

"Silhouette," Kamron tried to stand up but nearly fell face forward.

"You stay here," Larry picked up his weapon and ran towards the crypt.

The building was a mostly empty, save for the piles of dismembered zombies and dead harpies scattered across the floor.

Silhouette was pressed against the wall, held an inch above the floor by a blond woman dressed in white. The woman did not look like a corpse. There was no sign of rot, nothing falling off of her and no places on her alabaster white flesh that appeared to have been chewed. The tips of her ears were pointy and her eyes were a strange shade of light purple.

"Little kitty wants to play," the strange woman said in a slow tone. "Master not pleased with the kitty hunter."

"Let her go," Larry aimed his launcher at her.

"Who dares?" The woman did not turn to look at him. "Would it be another hunter to cause more harm for the master?"

"I'm here to make more trouble for you," Larry pulled back on the trigger. A white rocket flew through the air. It struck the woman on the back where it disintegrated into a thick cloud of white powder. The cloud of salt faded not long after the sound of a body slid to the floor and landed with a thump. Silhouette was on the ground, rubbing at her eyes and gasping for air.

Tears were streaming from the corners of the strange woman's eyes as well. "Foolish lizard," she hissed, revealing two long and curved fangs in her upper mouth.

"Dumb," Silhouette choked. "Salt has no effect on vampires."

"I didn't know," Larry stammered. He had no idea he was going up against vampires. "I'm used to zombies and ghosts."

"Too bad," the vampire leapt for Larry, her fingers were outstretched, claw like fingernails were curved down.

Larry swung his weapon and struck her hard in the face. It was enough force to deflect her attack and sent her to the ground. A single glass vial with a white cross on the label was thrown on the vampire.

The vampire lady hissed once the liquid hit her. Her skin bubbled and blistered as if she were struck by acid.

"I got plenty more where that came from," Silhouette held up two more vials. Her eyes were still bloodshot from the salt. She threw another vial at the vampire where it smashed on her toes.

The vampire woman hissed and ran towards the entrance of the crypt. "My master shall know of you." She warned.

"Stop her," Silhouette ran after the vampire. "Whatever you do, we can't let this one get away."

The vampire was fast and would have gotten away if she kept running. Which was why that it came to a surprise to Larry, when she stopped all of the sudden.

"No," the vampire gasped before the bottom half of her dress caught on fire. She turned around to face Larry and Silhouette.

"Too hot for ya?" Silhouette threw the third vial at the vampire at the same time as the monster's upper half was ignited.

"Master I'm sorry," the vampire cried out before she completely burned away into ash.

"Did the clouds break away?" Larry stared out of the entrance. The sky was still as thick and dark as before.

"She did it," Silhouette pointed down the hill.

There was a short and slender woman standing on the level ground, dressed in a grayish white gown with wide-open sleeves. A dark veil covered her head and her face. Smoke was still swirling around the woman's thin and bony fingers. There was an envelope in her other hand. She dropped it on the ground before she walked away.

"Wait," Larry shouted. He wanted to know who she was and thank her. He ran after her only to be pulled back by Silhouette.

"I swear, you don't know anything sometimes," the cat girl picked up the envelope. "She wasn't ready to speak with us." A claw like fingernail grew from her index finger. "She might want to meet with us later, but not now." She opened the letter with her claw before it retracted back into her hand.

"What does it say?" Larry asked.

"It's an address and a time," Silhouette read. "They want to meet at six. That will give us plenty of time to nap and plan, and figure out where to go."

"You were prepared for vampires," Larry said. "You had the holy water and a stake."

"You always have to be prepared for this kind of thing," Silhouette yawned. "I need my nap."

"Me too," Larry nodded. "Lets get Kamron and get back to the motel."

* * *

**Dark Land**

Luigi was certain that it was starting. His skin did not appear to be as scaly and the orange color was already fading to a tan and peach color. The spikes on his shell seem to be shrinking. He had already shown both Wendy and Kammy and they took the news well.

He wanted to ask Kammy for another vision again, right after she had finished feeding her little buds, but Bowser had plans for her. Luigi wanted to find out what happened to his mother. He had no idea if she was still alive or not. He had also wanted to inform Mario of all that he had learned, but Wendy told him that Kamek had recently put magical traces on the phone lines and computer lines.

"Oh Luigi," Tethys had flagged him down in one of the hallways. "I need to ask you for a couple of things."

"Sure," Luigi wasn't sure if the other could notice that he was changing or not.

"How do I look in this?" She twirled around in the cream white dress she was wearing. It was not one of the maternity dresses she had bought earlier.

"You look lovely," Luigi said. "Is there a special occasion?"

"Roy and I are going to get eloped," Tethys whispered. "I haven't told my family that I am carrying an egg yet, and if they found out that I'm still not wed, then they will disown me."

Luigi nodded. He know how some families are, he had even seen it happen in his own family. "Good luck."

"Thank you," Tethys smiled. "Also, Bowser wants to see Morton, and Morton refuses to leave his room."

"I'll get him," Luigi said. It didn't seem like such a bad chore; maybe it would even be easier than trying to wake Mario up in the morning.

Luigi knocked on Morton's door. "Keep out, show is in session," was on the sign hanging from the knob. "Morton," Luigi knocked. "Could you go into commercial for a second?"

"Can't," Morton shouted at the top of his lungs.

"I have brought you a snack," Luigi stared at the covered tray in his hands. It wasn't much of a snack, just the classic combination of cookies and a glass of milk. "Thought you could use it during your show."

There was the sound of feet scampering across the ground, along with the click of the lock, followed by even more scampering, before Morton shouted. "Come on in."

Luigi pushed the door open with his backside and shell. "I hope you don't mind cookies and milk, although these cookies are fresh from the oven."

"Sorry about the brief pause folks," Morton was leaning back in his computer chair in front of the flat screen desktop of his. There was a web camera placed on one of the shelves, and Morton was wearing a headset. "Please continue with your questions." He pointed to the space in front of the screen.

"Your father needs to see you," Luigi set the snack down and removed the lid.

Morton mouthed 'only three?' before he picked up one of the cookies. "How many times are you Sugarlanders going to call and bitch about your king?" Morton took a large bite out of the cookie. "He's not being cruel. He is being a strong ruler. They can't all be weak little pushovers like King Toadstool and his daughter. My advice to you is the same to all who live in Sugar Land, and that is to suck it up." He gobbled up the rest of the cookie and drank from the glass.

Luigi watched Morton with his arms crossed, eyes set in a glare and his tail twitching angrily. The brat was ignoring him when he gave him a treat and delivered the message. He even had the audacity to complain about how many he had received.

"Yeah the boss at level five is hard," Morton mumbled through a mouthful of cookie. "You can bypass it if you find the crystal key in the third level. You remember the area with the silver poles that seem to go nowhere? Yeah there is an invisible block. You just got jump around in the corner after you defeated the jumping rabid squirrels."

"Morton, your father wants to see you."

Morton waved Luigi away and finished his second cookie. "After you find it, and jump on it then jump again to the left, another block will form, and then you do that for the third time and you will get a ladder, and that will take you to the treasure chest that will have the crystal key." He took another long drink

Luigi had had it. He growled and grabbed Morton by the horn; in the same fashion he had seen Bowser perform.

"Hey," Morton demanded. "What gives?"

"I'll tell you what gives," Luigi removed the headset. "Your father wants to see you in the throne room, now."

"But my show," Morton pointed to the screen. "My audience needs me."

"Tell them you are going to commercial." Luigi still held onto his horn.

"I can't," Morton whined.

"Why, are you going to loose the feed or something?"

"No," Morton grabbed onto Luigi's wrist. "I've never gone to a commercial before, besides. I have nothing to use for a commercial."

"That is not my problem, your father has ordered you to go and see him, and he is not in the best mood."

"I can't loose my audience," Morton continued to cry. "Wait, I have an idea." He grabbed onto the headset. "Sorry about the tussle folks. This is one of my old rivals, Luigi Mario, the younger of the two famous Mario brothers. I have to leave for a few minutes, until then he will answer your questions." Morton placed the headset on Luigi's head.

"Wait a second," Luigi tapped the headset with his claw.

"You are just going to guest host for a few minutes," Morton grabbed the last cookie and his glass. "It will only be until my father is finished speaking with me, then I will take over again."

"What do I say?" Luigi stared at the screen, there was an online chat session going on. Several people where typing Luigi's name followed by question marks.

"Whatever is on your mind," Morton paused by the doorway. "If they like ya enough, then you can be a reoccurring guest." He placed the cookie in his mouth and closed the door behind him.

Luigi sighed. He had no idea how many people were watching him, seeing that he was indeed a Koopa. "Hello, audience of the Morton Show. I'm sorry if I'm not a good host. I can't really answer a lot of questions on vide games. Now if you want to ask about plumbing, or soccer, tennis, basketball, cart racing, or even baseball, then I can answer it."

"Are you really Luigi Mario?" Someone asked, and the voice sounded like it belonged to a child.

"Yes I am." That was pretty easy. He sat down in the chair.

"But you look like a Koopa, and not just a Troopa, but one of the dragon types."

"I am a Koopa." Well he was for now. He stared at his hands; there were no further changes. "Magic happens." He stared at the screen. There were several numbers by the names. "Okay the number one is next to someone called Fried Squid. Do you have a question?"

"Luigi it's me, Blooey." The Blooper on the other end said.

"Blooey?" Luigi felt a little uncomfortable. "How are you feeling?"

"Great now that I got the last skin graft, I was still thinking about getting even with you for that, but seeing you as a reptile kind of changed that."

"Glad you are feeling better," Luigi coughed into his hand. "Okay, next caller."

"Hey sonny," Gadd was heard on the other end.

"Hi professor, since when did you listen to the Morton Show?"

"I don't," Gadd said. "Daisy was the one who was a fan."

"Daisy?" Luigi chuckled "Daisy was the one who used to watch?"

"Iggy and I can't explain it," Gadd said. "Although we can figure out what had happened with the machine. Iggy had thought that maybe it went in reverse and we checked that out. We got no results with that one, but when it did lead us to the correct discovery. It read all of your DNA and instead of just yours and changed all of your DNA."

"So some of their DNA was changed to Koopa and mine was to human, but that still doesn't explain why that I am just turning back just now."

"We are still looking into that. It could have something to do with the fact that magic was involved."

"That would explain it," Luigi read the screen to see who is next. "Okay grumbledrop, you are next."

"Luigi I have not heard of either you or your brother before," the person on the other end was a woman. "I hope you will listen when no one else will, not even Morton when others have asked him."

"Go on," Luigi wasn't sure he was ready to face such a hard question.

"Its King Nougat" the caller explained. "Many have said there was something wrong with him ever since he was a small child, always seemed so cold, so distant, and now that he is king he is a cruel tyrant."

"What are some things he is doing?" Luigi asked.

"No one is allowed to enter or leave the land, it was difficult to get this message out. He will be making contact with the other kingdoms forbidden. He has made it mandatory that all boys are to be drafted at age 14 into his army. He has limited products on almost everything since he says he needs the materials for an upcoming war. Hospitals need medicine, more people need shelter and food and he-" The line went dead.

"Hello caller?" Luigi was frightened. He was certain the woman did not want to end the call then and now.

"Hey," Morton tapped Luigi on the shoulder. "Guess what, time is up and dad wants to see you."

"All yours," Luigi handed him the headset.

* * *

Bowser was standing in front of a line of Sumos, Boomerang bros, and Monty Moles when Luigi entered.

"There you are," Bowser smiled. "Unlike my loudmouth of a son you are prompt. He told me you grabbed his horn."

"I'm sorry about that," Luigi lied.

"Don't be. You have to grab his horn to get anywhere with him, now I know you are wondering why I got all these guys here."

"My guess is you wanted them to report?" Luigi shrugged.

"Not quite," Bowser shook his head. "I want you to take these guys and go and find out on a scouting mission, see what Princess Peach is up to, besides the upcoming nuptials."

Luigi swallowed. He wasn't certain how anyone was going to see him when he is spying on Peach's castle. "When do you want me to leave?"

"Around six," Bowser said.

Luigi nodded. Great, it wasn't as if he had enough on his mind already.


	22. Secret Meeting

**Chapter 22: Secret Meeting**

**

* * *

**_Mushroom Kingdom_

"Keep low," Luigi instructed his small army behind him. He was crouched behind clumps and rows of shrubbery behind Peach's castle. "We don't want any of the guards to find out we are here, now they are not the problem. The problem will occur when they alert my brother." He was still trying to figure out he had gotten himself talked into this situation. That's right, due to the magical bugs placed on all communication he had to figure out some way to get the message about Sugar Land to Mario and the others.

"Should we surround the castle?" One of the boomerang bros asked. He was the one who was in charge of the other boomerang throwers.

"Not completely surround it," Luigi shook his head. "Just about one third, near the garden." He inhaled deep. "I have never really done something like this before."

"I think you are doing a pretty good job," the same brother said. "Then again these have become somewhat routine, we go and scope out the area, notice that they never have bothered to find someway to improve their defense. We tell our king and he kidnaps the princess, and this goes on over and over and over."

"There does need to be some variety," Ludwig's conversation with him appeared in his mind. "Maybe he should release an onslaught and outright just take over the kingdom."

"We were thinking the same thing, sir," the brother said.

"What is your name?" Luigi asked him.

"Swish."

"Swish, I am going to tell you a small plan that I have just thought of." He had actually thought of it hours before during dinner and he had the items he needed in his overalls. If all goes well, then Bowser's recent plan will be defeated, Luigi will look good in his eyes and make him proud, Peach and Mario will know about the problems with Sugar Land and in a few days He can also join them. He just hoped he would be convincing enough. "I am going to kidnap Princess Peach, and take her to the fortress."

"Whoa," Swish blinked. "If you don't mind me asking sir, how are you going to do that? Bowser usually has several ways of getting past the guards and making sure Mario isn't at the castle."

"The first part is easy. These idiots think that I am still on their side. Peach will follow me out and the guards won't even bat an eyelid."

Swish nodded. "What would you like us to do?"

Luigi pointed to the nearest pipe. There were several small trees and bushes surrounding it. "I want the sumos to hide in the vegetation. When I get Peach past them they jump out and make the grounds shake." He pointed at the nearest mole. "I need you guys to dig small pits, ones shallow enough for the boomerangs to sit in and then cover them with leaves."

"When the guards come past we jump out," Swish understood that part of the plan. "The king has no idea what you have in mind."

"No one does."

* * *

_New Sharpe_

Larry stared down at the address written on the note in his hand and the number on the door. They were at the right place and they were on time. The address lead them to a small house in the middle of a suburban community. There was nothing ominous about the place. It was still kept in good condition; the light blue paint had no signs of cracking or peeling. The lawn was well manicured and even the curtains appeared to be new.

"Nice place," Silhouette stared at the house and then glanced around the neighborhood. "Probably has one of those lames signs that said 'If you lived here you would be home right now.'"

"You don't like this place?" Kamron asked as Larry knocked on the door. "This looks like a nice and cozy place to live. I wouldn't mind living in a place like this."

The front door opened to the length the small gold chain from within allowed it. "State your names," the man on the other side said.

"Larry Koopa," Larry introduced himself. "Someone gave us this address."

"I just want your names."

"Kamron Runes."

"Silhouette Mcgee."

The door closed and the click of the chain being removed was heard before it opened wide. "You may enter." The toad behind the door was somewhere around his late fifties. His salt and pepper colored beard was as scruffy as was his long scraggily hair. His mushroom cap was almost gray with brown spots. He was dressed in a wife beater, black leather vest, and blue jeans with noticeable bleach stains, black sunglasses, and cowboy boots.

"Than you sir," Kamron addressed as they entered into what appeared to have been a basic and normal living room. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary.

"I like this one," the old man pointed at Kamron with his black cane. "He knows his manners and doesn't just walk on in and gawk."

"Sorry," Silhouette said. The end of her tail was flicking back and forth. "We are on edge from the fighting."

"You don't think you are the only one who is out fighting these blood sucking sons of a bitches, do you, missy?"

"Hey," either Silhouette did not like hearing profanity out of old people's mouths or she did not like to be called missy. Her tail had bristled up and her ears flattened against the top of her head.

"No offense but we haven't seen you out there," Larry curled his fingers into fists. "Maybe you were fighting in a different area and we didn't see you, but we have been up since dawn."

"I apologize for them," Kamron held up his hands. "We all are a bit edgy because of the zombies and we don't know you."

"I still like you the best," the toad said. "You are right in that I didn't give you my name. You can call me Howls. This way."

He lead them down to the basement where Larry was hit with the scent of fried food, burgers, fries, onion rings, chicken pieces and something that smelled sweet. He could also detect the scent of another toad.

"I hope you are hungry," Howls said once he had reached the bottom step. "Not that I think you would be appreciative."

"Did they come?" Another voice asked. "I got the food spread out. Everything is still warm, except for the sodas and shakes."

"Shakes?" Silhouette's voice came out in a squeak.

"Are you okay?" Larry never saw her with such an odd smile on her face before.

"I'm better than okay," her smile grew larger. "We have milkshakes?"

"I hope strawberry is okay," the man setting down the last beverage container was the toad equivalent to a Sledge brother. He was a little over six feet in height and built like a brick. He had a prominent chin and dark eyebrows. He was also wearing a wife beater and jeans, but instead of a leather vest he wore a denim jacket that was cut off at the sleeves. His mushroom cap had orange spots.

"Strawberry is fine," Silhouette never lost that smile of hers.

"Whoa," Kamron eyed the large toad up and down. "May I ask who this is?"

"This is Squishy," Howls introduced. "He is another strong fighter. I asked him to get you food."

"Thank you Mr. Howls," Silhouette's voice dripped honey before skipped ahead to the table. "Thank you Mr. Squishy," she held out her hand. "I'm Silhouette."

"Nice to meet you," Squishy held out a metallic hand. Silhouette didn't balk and accepted it. "But Squishy is my first name."

"She certainly remembered her manners," Howls adjusted his sunglasses. "Squishy, did you give Madam S her drink?"

"She has her medicine," Squishy picked up one of the small bags of fries. "And she is taking her nap."

"I dreamt I held you in my hands last night," Silhouette cradled one of the milkshakes to her chest, before she brought the straw to her mouth and slurped.

"You two might as well start to eat up," Howls said. "We have a lot of things to cover."

"Like what?" Larry wasted no time in grabbing one of the burgers and unwrapped it.

"Everything you know about the vampires and zombies."

"Ouch," Silhouette pressed her fingers against her forehead. "Oh that was worth it."

"Everything I know," Larry inhaled and took a large bite out of his burger.

* * *

_Mushroom Kingdom_

It was too easy, Luigi had thought as he and the Princess walked through the garden. Not a single person had even thought twice of what had happened. "I am still not certain if it should be two separate gifts, or one for each of you," Luigi said.

"You don't have to think too much on the subject," Peach said. "I'm sure whatever you come up will be nice."

"Maybe it will be the grand gift for you and Mario and then when I take Mario out for his bachelor party, I'll get him something a little personal."

"As long as it isn't something that is too kinky," Peach held out her hands as they passed by a tree and caught a falling red leaf. "We have to prepare the garden for the upcoming winter."

Luigi nodded. They were at the edge of the garden and there were no guards around, but he still felt the timing was off. "What do you know of Sugar Land?"

"I have never been there," Peach dropped the leaf. "I know it is next to Harmony Land and the ruler is only fifteen years old."

"He sounds to be a pretty ambitious king," Luigi took her hand into his. "How many times has Bowser kidnapped you?"

"I have lost count," she stared at the ground. "I know, I should be able to defend myself better. I never know when he is going to attempt to kidnap me."

"You know what I think?" he grabbed her by the waist. He ignored her gasp and picked her up. "I think you should defend your whole damn castle better."

"What are you doing?" Peach asked.

"We are going to see my master," Luigi lowered his voice as he ran towards the warp pipe he had set up. "King Bowser."

"No," Peach's eyes widened. "You said you were pretending to be on their side."

"And you fell for it," he laughed. "You are so gullible, you are not even worthy for King Bowser, or for my brother."

"Mario," Peach cried out. "Guards, someone help me." Good, she alerted the guards and called out for Mario that means his brother was going to come to rescue her.

Luigi ran past the area where Swish and the others were hiding. He glanced over his shoulder to see that there was another handful of guards after him. He didn't have to look to see or hear his troops attacking them.

"Luigi stop doing this," Peach was crying. "We love you, don't turn your back on everyone."

"Why? They have turned their back on me." It hurt him to put her through this.

"Help me," Peach continued to cry out to her guards and struck Luigi on the back and shoulders with her fists.

Luigi waited until they were next to the warp pipe before he set Peach down and tried to catch his breath. He kept one hand firmly clamped onto her wrist. "Good, they know you have been taken by Bowser's forces. I didn't hurt you?"

"What?" Peach stared at him in confusion.

"Everything will be explained here," Luigi removed the note that was folded up around a key. "This will explain everything." He placed it into the false pocket underneath her top hem. Destroy it once you read it."

"Oh," realization crossed her face before she screamed again. "Mario, help me."

"Good," Luigi picked her up and carried her into the pipe.

* * *

_New Sharpe_

"That pretty much covers it," Larry placed another fry into his mouth. "I never fought vampires before."

"You do know how to kill them?" Howls asked.

"A stake through the heart," Larry listed all the ways he knew how to kill them from what he read in books and seen on television and in the movies. "They fry up in sunlight, holy water burns them and so does fire."

"I heard they also don't like garlic," Kamron wiped his beak with a napkin. "I don't know if that is true."

"They are not fond of it," Silhouette twirled an onion ring on her finger. "Doesn't really hurt them, just works more as a repellant. Vamps also die if you cut of their heads, and it doesn't have to be a stake, although it has to be wooden. Wooden swords, arrows, spears, axes, and good konk with a wooden club can also work."

"You've come across them before," Squishy said. He shoved the last remaining fraction of his burger into his mouth.

"I started my training when I was ten and I started to hunt when I was twelve."

"Pretty young," Squishy gave her pat on her shoulder. "What was your motivation?"

"Does one need a motivation to fight against the undead?" She popped the ring into her mouth.

"Most would want to fight them," Howls leaned back in his chair. "But most are too afraid, or just hero wannabes, they lack the drive and the determination."

"You said you lost someone," Larry turned to her.

"Figures," Howls said. "She lost someone close to her."

"We all have lost someone close to us," a frail voice from the top of the stairs said. "It is never the same." It was the woman from the graveyard. She was still wearing the same material as before and seemed to float to the bottom of the stairs. "Do not brush it off, Howls. Their pain is different than yours but it still cuts and stings, just the same."

"Kids this is Madam S," Howls stood up. "You may not pay any respect to me, but you damn well better mind your manners around her." He pulled out another chair.

"Hamburgers again, Squishy?" Madam S asked as she sat down.

"You wouldn't let me go and get pizza," Squishy said before he let out a loud belch. "Excuse me."

"No one around here ever makes it right," Madam S brought her fingers to her veil. They were paler than Larry remembered. "You never allow me to cook for you." She pulled back the material. She was close to Howls age and her face was as pale as her hands. Lines were etched around the corners of her eyes and mouth. She had noticeable shadows under her pale bluish purple eyes. Two thick streaks of silver ran through her dark and graying hair. She was probably a beautiful woman when she was young.

"We don't want you to push yourself so hard," Squishy said. He reached for one of the last milkshakes.

"Who did you lose?" Madam S asked as Howls unwrapped a burger for her. "Unless it is too painful."

"I didn't exactly lose anyone," Silhouette sighed. "Just parts of my parents, It was when we were still living on Isle Costa Gato. My father was an officer and my mother was a librarian. She came across one book on the Lazarus stones and decided to check it out for herself. That evening the vampires came. They wanted the book. I hid in my room, but I heard my parent's screams as they were tortured and they forced my mom to watch as the continued to torture my father. Hunters tracked the vampires down before my parents could be killed."

"That was all?" Howls placed his hands on the table. "They killed my wife and my oldest child before my eyes and all they did was torture your parents while you hid?"

Silhouette's ears went back and she hissed. "My mother is in a mental hospital, you jackass and they broke my father's back. He was in a coma for months."

"Howls," Madam S glared at him. "Sit down and allow the poor dear to continue."

"Mom didn't start to really lose it until after father came out of his coma and was released from the hospital. He can never move his legs again. Before the attack he used to go on jogs. He also enjoyed playing soccer. He went through a mild depression and mother just babbled to herself and went on walks, walks that ended up lasting for days. They had to commit her, for her own safety."

"I'm sorry," Larry wanted to reach out and take her hand to assure her.

"Dad is better now," Silhouette continued. "He is still in a chair, but he has a more upbeat attitude. He still has a job with the force, albeit it is behind the desk and he has taken up some hobbies, loves model kits. Mom has her good days and her bad days."

"They took my girlfriend," Squishy set his shake down. "We were going to the beach, whoever thought vampires would end up at a beach? Who ever thought vampires were real in the first place? They took my girlfriend, made her into one of them, and then they came for me and got my hand." He held up his metal hand. "Actually it was one of their hell beasts. Bastard bit it right off."

"Wow," Kamron stared at him in amazement. "How did you fight back?"

"I was tracking that particular group of vampires," Howls said. "I teamed up with Squishy and we fought those sons of a bitches together."

Larry felt sick, and not from the food. "I just came into Tempo Town for a visit, didn't know there would be zombies. I met this girl; Chloe and she taught me how to fight. We tracked them down to the lab run by Doctor Howard. A bomb was set off. Chloe stayed back while I was dragged away. I promised her that I would fight them again."

"I didn't loose anyone," Kamron stared into his soda. "My teacher told me to go with Larry to keep him company."

"I'm sorry if this is too painful," Silhouette stared up at Madam S. "But what about you, how did you get in this mess?"

"My story is far too long," Madam S said. "I have lost everyone."

"We need to get the weapons ready," Howls stood up again. "The boys can help Squishy sharpen stakes. You ladies can round up as much pure water, holy water, garlic and every ward you can think off.

"Don't forget salt rock," Larry added.

"We won't," Silhouette stood up.

"I've heard how kids been fighting, moving from town to town and taking out the trash. We are going to cut this short. We are going straight into the city to take out their leader."

"What about the secret weapon?" Squishy asked.

"What secret weapon?" Larry turned to the old toad.

"You will see," Howls said. "It is going to help us and the hunters that are already at Symphony City."

* * *

**A/N:**

Squishy and Howls are based on two characters from two different horror trilogies.


	23. Rescue

**Chapter 23: Rescue**

* * *

_Dark Land_

Luigi was nearly out of breath by the time he had reached Bowser's fortress. Peach wanted to give him a break and walk by his side while in the pipe, but there was no way they could tell if one of Bowser's minions might appear, or if Swish or one of his troops would have caught up.

"Let me go," Peach cried out and drummed her fists against Luigi's shell, creating a tapping and beating mix. Luigi had taken note that she had no problem avoiding his spikes and he could almost feel her fists. "How could you betray us?"

"It was easy," Luigi snarled. He carried her across the drawbridge, past the various members of the Troop who stared at him with shocked expressions on their faces.

There was a small group gathered in the throne room. Both Kamek and Kammy were there, along with Morton, several Buzzy beetles, Sledge bros, and, Wrigglers. All conversions came to an end when Luigi entered the room.

"Luigi's back," Morton had taken upon himself to announce his arrival. "And he has Peach." He kept his large grin for a few seconds before realization struck. "He brought Peach."

The room was quiet, save for the few murmurs, and Peach's sobbing. Luigi felt the remaining part of his tail twitching back and forth. He cast a glance over the entire crowd before he locked his own eyes with Bowser's.

"Well," Bowser did not move, nor blink. His jaw had dropped when Luigi first stepped inside, but now he was smiling. "This is quite the surprise."

"I know I didn't follow direct orders," Luigi placed a hand on Peach's shoulder. "And I am sorry if you wanted to take her yourself."

"I'm not sorry," Bowser's smile grew even larger. "Why should I be sorry? You have made things easier for me, and I am impressed that you were able to carry out such a task."

"It was quite easy," Luigi grabbed Peach by the hair. "The princess was quite gullible." He gave her hair a light pull. "I asked her if she could join me on a walk, and discuss what I should get Mario as a wedding gift."

"What have you done to him?" Peach stared into Bowser's eyes. "You turned him against us."

"I didn't do anything, Princess." Bowser ran his claws through her hair. "He did this on his own, and I must say that I am quite pleased with him." He stood back up and snapped his fingers. "Guards, you know where to take her by now."

Two of the Sledge brothers grabbed Peach by the arms and dragged her away.

"Luigi," she cried out to him as they took her away.

"Sire, why do you waste your time and effort on her?" Luigi asked. "I am certain there are other women who are so much better and so much more worthy of you."

"That is really my concern," Bowser turned to Kamek. "We need to step up to phase two of the take over, and open another bottle of wine."

"Forgive me if I may seem intrusive," Luigi said. He just hoped the Princess will be able to do her part after she had read the note he had given her, and then all he had to do was wait for Mario to.

"You are just looking out for my interest," Bowser put an arm around his shoulders. "And enough with the Sire crap, call me dad. You are part of the family."

"Finally a family I can be proud to be in." Deep in his mind and soul, Luigi was apologizing to his aunts, uncles, grandmother, and his parents who he never really remembered and only saw in a vision in Kammy's crystal, and finally an apology to Mario.

* * *

Peach did not stop sobbing, not until after the door to her cell was closed and locked. She sat there with her back turned for a few more minutes. She was certain the two Sledge brothers were still there, guarding her. She scooted herself around to see and sure enough they were there, standing with their shells facing her.

"Excuse me," she wiped away her tears from her cheeks. "I have worn out my voice and my throat feels dry, can I have a glass of water?"

The two guards did not say anything or move. They didn't even grunt. They were like two muscle bound statues.

Peach sighed. It wasn't going to be too difficult to get past them if she used her wits. They also didn't seem to be paying much attention to her. She turned around and lifted the false hem of her dress and removed the note and key from her pocket.

_I am sorry if I was a little rough with you when I first grabbed you, I know that it must be a bit of a surprise. If I had said anything to upset you, I didn't mean it._

'I know you didn't mean a single word of it,' Peach thought as she read. She knew it was all an act.

_I can't really call and I couldn't really e-mail you this time. The Magikoopas put wards on the phones and computers. I had to find some way to get this message out to you. There is something going on in Sugar Land. A few people have cried out about the conditions imposed by their king. Boys as young as 14 are being drafted and many supplies are being rationed, no one is allowed to enter or leave. I think they are planning on a take over._

It did sound like a takeover. Peach was going to have to talk with Toadsworth and her father about it, as well as send word to the many different nations.

_After Mario has rescued you, I am going to set out for Sugar Land and find out what is going on. Knowing you and Mario, you will both try to catch up. I have a feeling we can take care of the situation together._

'Of course we will.'

_The key is used on all of the dungeons, a type of skeleton key, also can be found on the key ring of the guards. Try to escape after you rip up the letter, however I will try to capture you again, at least until Mario arrives._

_Apologies in advance_

_Luigi_

Peach looked over her shoulder to see the two guards still haven't moved and kept her eyes on them as she ripped up the letter into what would work as confetti. She forced one third of the scraps in her mouth and chewed, while she scattered the rest in the dungeon.

"Ack," she gagged as she tried to swallow the scraps and coughed. "I could really use that glass of water." There was still no movement from the guards. "Bowser will be upset if I get dehydrated, and only one of you needs to leave. The other is strong enough to watch over me."

The two guards stared at each other before one nodded and left the area. That was one down, and another one to go.

Peach stared out the barred up window, not many could get in or out, save for mice and insects. She got another idea. "A bee," she gasped and ran around in a circle in her cell. "There is a bee in here. Oh no, there is a bee in here." She ran up the guard. "It just crawled in under your helmet."

"Get it out," the Sledge Bros threw his helmet off. "Wait, I don't see a bee."

"Nope, but you might see some birdies." Peach held up the key Luigi gave her, right between the bars and over her captor's head. She brought it down with all her strength.

There was the distinct thud, followed by the sledge brother collapsing onto the ground.

"That was a little too easy," Peach slipped the key into the lock and turned it. She slipped out the cell and ran towards the stairs.

She was halfway up when she felt someone grab her by the shoulders and force her against the wall.

"Going somewhere, Princess?" Luigi hissed in her ear. His low voice sent a shiver down her spine.

"Please Luigi, please let me go." She felt the tears return.

"Why should I do that?" Luigi asked.

"Because you are my friend and I care about you."

"Save your sweet words for someone else," He pulled her away from the wall and they both came face to face with first guardsman. He was carrying a glass of water. "How about we make an exchange?" He handed Peach over to the guard and took the glass for himself.

"Let me go," Peach screamed as the Sledge brother threw her over his back.

"I'll be certain to tell his majesty about this," Luigi held up the glass before he took a sip.

* * *

Luigi hated a part of himself. He hated the scene he had created at Peach's castle, he hated causing Peach to cry, although that was an act on her part, and it still hurt him on the inside.

"I know why you are doing this," Wendy sat next to him on their bed. "And if I wasn't carrying your egg I would join you." She ran her claws through his hair.

"Mario is going to hate me," Luigi sighed. "That is if he isn't going to kill me."

"He is not going to kill you," Wendy said. "If everything goes according to plan then Peach is going to tell him the truth."

"Not if he kills me before she tells him," he had a feeling Bowser was going to order him to fight against his own brother.

"He won't kill you, not when you are stronger than he is."

"If I was still a Koopa I would be a little more certain," Luigi stared at his hands. His fingers were five slender human fingers ending in sharp white claws. His skin color was almost back to normal, even with the patches of scales. His tail was now a stump, the spikes were gone from his shell and his teeth had started to change. He still had his horns, but they could only be seen without his hat.

"You may not still be as strong as us, but you are still stronger than a human," Wendy reminded him.

"I won't be able to wrestle with your brothers any more," he sat up. "And I will offend your nose."

"You will never offend me."

"Luigi," Roy pounded on their door. "Dad wants us front and center in the ball room on the eighth floor."

"What is going on?" Luigi asked.

"Your brother is here, that is what is going on."

"Time to face the music," Luigi gave his wife a kiss on her cheek and another kiss on her belly. She had just started to show, and there was a noticeable hardness.

"Good luck," Wendy said.

* * *

The battle had already started by the time Roy and Luigi entered the ballroom. Yoshi was running around in circles trying to doge Lemmy's leaps as well as the large rubber balls the small Koopa tossed at him. Toad was trying to dodge Junior's attacks. Toadette was throwing several Yoshi eggs at Morton and Mario was dodging fire attacks from both Ludwig and Bowser while he was throwing fireballs in retaliation.

"Hah," Toadette threw one last egg at Morton, striking him on the head and causing him to fall backwards and land butt first in a puddle of yolks.

"Gotcha," Junior pounced on Toad.

Yoshi ducked and missed another rubber ball bounced over his head. He ran past Junior and Toad and flicked out his tongue and grabbed Junior, once he was in his mouth he turned to Lemmy and spat the youngest Koopaling out in the direction of Lemmy striking him in the head and knocking him out.

"Don't you dare try to eat my children," Bowser roared and rained down more fire in Yoshi's direction.

"Stupid lizard," Roy growled. "No one beats on my little brothers except for me." He launched himself towards Yoshi.

"Poor Yoshi," Luigi muttered before he ran past a wiped out Morton, towards Toadette. "You shouldn't be here." He growled. What was Mario thinking in dragging her along? She was not a fighter and he didn't dare think of someone as sweet as her getting hurt.

"No," Toadette frowned. "Say it isn't true."

Luigi pinned he down and bent over. "It isn't true." He whispered in her ear. He placed one hand, palm up an inch by her face and struck it with his fist. She made a gasp and closed her eyes.

"Luigi," Mario called out from the other side of the room. He had already defeated Ludwig in battle.

"Get me down from here damn it," Roy had somehow managed to get himself stuck on one of the chandeliers.

"Mario," Peach called out. She was hanging from the ceiling by a thick piece of rope that was tired to the more rope that kept her tied up.

"Get him Luigi," Bowser had Yoshi by the tail.

"Luigi," Mario was glaring right at him. His face was red. "How could you?"

"Easy," Luigi tried to help Morton to his feet, but the amount of yolk caused him to slip from his grasp. "It was so easy that I aught to be ashamed of myself."

"Do you know how much this hurts me? Your own brother, how could you do this to your own brother?"

"You are not my brother," Luigi kept up the act. He couldn't help but notice how tight Mario's clothes were and it almost did seem like his shorter brother was growing. "These are my brothers." He pointed to Morton and looked up at Roy.

"You tell that fatass," Roy smiled down at him.

Luigi tried to suppress the growl, no one makes fun of Mario's weight except for him, but he still heard it, even if he didn't feel it. It only took him a second before Luigi realized it didn't come from him, but rather Mario, right before his brother had tackled him to the ground.

"Mario don't hurt him," Peach shouted. "We can still get him back."

Luigi tried to force Mario off of him, but his brother was stronger than him. He stared into his brother's light blue eyes when he heard a ripping sound. He glanced towards Mario's backside and noticed the pale orange Koopa tail that had just grown back. More ripping was heard as a crimson shell forced its way through Mario's clothes and formed several pointed spikes.

"Mario?" Luigi felt sharp claws press through his shirt. He stared at his brother's face as his mouth and nose merged together into a snout and horns tore through his hat.

Mario growled again and slammed Luigi's head down against the floor.

"Mario stop it," Peach shouted.

It had hurt Luigi, but it wasn't enough to knock him out. He closed his eyes to throw Mario off and only opened one when he felt his brother's weight removed from his chest.

Bowser just stared at them, wide eyed, and his jaw hanging. He barely even reacted in time to Mario's fire breath. He jumped as the flames shot out.

Mario snarled as he jumped onto Bowser and nearly knocked the Koopa King back. He sank his fangs into Bowser's arm and swiped at him with his claws.

"Ow!" Bowser roared and released Yoshi from his hold. "Get off me you rabid plumber."

Mario jumped off his shoulders, into the air and then landed on Bowser's head before he ran to the princess.

Luigi sat up to watch as Mario released more fire from his mouth, straight towards Peach's tether, burning through the rope. Mario jumped as Peach fell and caught her. Once they had landed he used his claws and teeth to tear through her binds.

"Thanks Mario," Peach hadn't lost the shocked expression on her face.

Mario said nothing and threw Peach across his back and ran out.

"I think that is our cue to leave," Toad helped Toadette to her feet and the two climbed onto Yoshi before they ran off after Mario.

"Dude," Morton was finally able to stand up again. "That was so cool."

"How was that cool?" Ludwig sat up. Luigi had a feeling that his heart wasn't fully in the battle either. "Look at our father."

Bowser had slash marks on his shell and across the top of his head. Most of his blood was oozing from the bite on his arm.

"Daddy, do humans usually turn into Koopas when they get really, really mad?" Junior asked.

"No," Bowser stared at his arm.

"We need to get you and everyone checked out," Luigi stood up. He had a bit of a story to tell Wendy.

* * *

"Mario, please set me down," Peach said once she and the others had cleared out of the warp pipe to the Mushroom Kingdom. "I can walk the rest of the way."

"You are not hurt?" Mario asked he set her down. She had forgotten how much taller he was in Koopa form. She could almost stare into his eyes.

"I'm fine, but I think we should talk about what had happened back there."

"My own brother, my only brother betrayed me," Mario growled. "That was what happened."

"No he didn't," Toadette slid off of Yoshi's saddle. "It was all a trick. He whispered in my ear and pretended to hurt me."

"It was a trick," she held onto his hands and tried not to stare at them. "Those hurtful words were all just lies. He never wanted to hurt you."

"It was a trick?" Mario blinked his eyes. "I could have hurt him."

"But you didn't," she embraced her fiancé. She didn't want him to go through shock; turning into a Koopa would be bad enough. "He was fine when we left." She felt his snout nuzzle against the back of her neck; right before she felt sharp teeth graze against the flesh. "Mario!" She stepped away.

"What?" Mario asked.

"You were about to bite her," Toad said. "Are you feeling all right?"

"Yoshis nip the backs of the necks of our mates," Yoshi said. "Maybe it is the same for Koopas."

"I wasn't going to bite her," Mario scratched the top of his head until his hands came across one of his horns. His eyes widened as he grabbed onto both of them. "No." He stared at his hands. "Not again."

"You are just now realizing you've turned into a Koopa?" Toad asked him. "Didn't you feel it, or even heard yourself growling?"

"No," Mario examined his tail.

"You went feral on Bowser and you spat fire again," Yoshi pointed at him.

"I kind of blacked out when I attacked Bowser, and I thought I was still throwing fireballs." Mario fell to his knees. "I thought it was over. What if this is permanent?"

"I still love you," Peach kneeled next to him. "That is all that matters." She kissed him on the snout. "And in the morning we will call Gadd and find out what is going on." She held him in his arms. She will inform the others about Sugar Land after they had returned to the castle, but first she had to make certain Mario was well enough to continue.

"Why was Luigi pretending?" Mario asked after what seemed like forever had passed.

"He had to tell us about something suspicious going on in another kingdom," Peach stood back up. "He plans to set out for Sugar Land tomorrow, and we are going to join him, right after we figure out what has happened to you, Mario."

"Need some rest," Mario returned to his feet. "And I need something to eat, and hopefully get this Bowser taste out of my mouth."


	24. Departure

**Chapter 24: Departure **

* * *

Peach sat at the end of the table with her head in her hands and her elbows on the surface as she watched Mario eat. She and the others were also hungry once they had returned to the castle, but several minutes had passed since everyone else, including Yoshi, had eaten their fill.

"I should stop," Mario wiped the end of his snout with a napkin. "Do I usually eat this much?"

"It is a little more than usual," Peach said. "We did eat a lot when we were at Gadd's, remember?"

"Yeah," he paused to take a long drink from his glass of cola. "I think Luigi mentioned something about Koopa appetites."

"Eat until your full," Peach sat back. "I'm just glad you are not hurt."

"Thanks," he picked up another chicken leg and sank his sharp teeth into the flesh.

"Princess, your father and I would like a word with you," Toadsworth was standing at the entrance. "Alone."

"I'll be right back," Peach gave Mario a kiss before she followed after Toadsworth. "What is it?"

Both Toadsworth and her father stared at each other before the elderly toad cleared his throat. "Your father and I are a bit concerned."

"Is it about Sugar Land?" Peach had delivered the message to both Toadsworth and her father when she and the others had returned.

"I have tried to contact King Nougat," her father ran his fingers through his graying goatee. "But I cannot reach him. It seems like all communication has been blocked off."

"That is what concerns me," Peach said. "We have to speak with the rulers of the other lands."

"We will, but we want to speak with you about Mario," Toadsworth leaned on his cane.

"What about Mario?" She had a feeling they want to talk about Mario's latest metamorphosis. "I am aware that he is a Koopa now."

Both men looked at each other again and her father sighed. "We don't think it is in the best interest of the kingdom if you married him."

"What?"

"Peach, I know that you love him and both Toadsworth and I are very fond of him," her father continued, sadness twinkled in his dark eyes. "But after I pass on you will be Queen and the man that you marry will be king and I feel our people will not want, or accept a Koopa as their king."

"I can't believe you are saying this," Peach felt her own blood starting to boil. "There are good Koopas out there, not all of them are bad, and not all of them are evil. Bowser may have given them a bad reputation, but they are not all bad and what had happened to Mario is temporary."

"I know you think you may cure the lad," Toadsworth said. "But you tried the same with Luigi, and that brings up another point. We want to keep Mario under watch, in case he does end up betraying the kingdom and tries to kidnap you, like his brother."

"Did you not hear a single word that I said?" Peach clenched her hands. "Not all Koopas are evil. Do you know where I got the information about Sugar Land? Luigi told me. The kidnapping was a set up. You can ask the others and they will tell you. Bowser thinks Luigi is on his side and Luigi had to keep up the pretense, not too mention there are magical wards that is limiting communication between us."

"Are you telling me he is working on the inside as a spy for us?" Toadsworth adjusted his glasses.

"Yes," Peach closed her eyes. "And for the people of Sugar Land. I had to destroy the note, Luigi wrote, but it sounds like King Nougat is preparing for a war. He is forcing young boys into his army."

"This sounds serious," her father laced his fingers together. "Toadsworth, you and I need to start contacting the other rulers. I'll start with Hugo, Emperor Ed, Windbag and the Sultan of Desert Land."

"I'll contact the rulers of Pipe Land, Sky Land, and Water Land," Toadsworth tapped his cane.

"I'll call Daisy," once she relayed the information to her, then Daisy would contact her father. "And then I'll call Peasely, Nimbus Land, and King Fret."

* * *

_Dark Land_

Luigi stared at his coffee cup as a Shyguy filled it with the dark bubbling liquid. He dared not bring up last night's adventure and it seemed no one else wanted to talk about it either.

Bowser had a thick pad of gauze on his arm from where Mario bit him, held secure by a roll on bandage. He also had smaller bandages from where the smaller Koopa had scratched him.

"What is everyone's plans for today?" Tethys asked after several minutes of silence and chewing.

"I need to improve my skills," Lemmy bit into a donut. He had a noticeable bruise and knot on his forehead.

"Go over some numbers," Morton poured some hot sauce onto his eggs. "I need to think on how to squeeze some money out of my site." He passed the bottle down to Ludwig.

"Money?" the eldest Koopaling asked. "You are trying to become a bit of entrepreneur?"

"Yeah," Morton nodded. "You can make money off of almost anything and everything on the Internet these days."

"I need to let my parents know about the good news," Tethys held out her hand. There was a silver band with a small crystal in the center. "They may not be pleased about me eloping with Roy, but I think they will understand the circumstance. Besides, we can always have a nice wedding on a later date." She kissed Roy.

"Easy babe," Roy smiled from the kiss. "I'm kinda still sore from where that big dumb lizard left bruises on me."

Silence followed and everyone resumed their chewing.

"Luigi," Junior broke the silence. "How come you are human again?"

"I'm not certain," Luigi stared at the few scaly patches on his arms. He was almost human again. His shell had shrunk down to a thin layer that was more like leather on his back. His horns were as small as Junior's and his canines were the only teeth that were still a little long.

"I'll tell you why," Kammy shook her fork and pointed it at Kamek. "It was because we were not in proper sync."

"And whose fault is that?" Kamek glared back at her. "Don't go putting all the blame on me. It was your fault just as mine."

"We could try again," Kammy said. "Once he has changed back. The spell won't go right if he is still part Koopa."

"It doesn't matter," Wendy grabbed onto Luigi's hand. "We love each other no matter what."

"Maybe once I return," Luigi took another sip from his cup. "I'm going to seek out other kingdoms for us."

"I like the way that you think," Bowser smiled. "How many troops do you need?"

"None," Luigi shook his head. "I don't want to rouse any suspicion."

Bowser nodded. "Someone should still go with you. Kammy, I want you to go with Luigi."

"Yes sire," Kammy nodded.

"After breakfast we will pack," of all the people Bowser could have sent, Ludwig and Kammy were the ones he wouldn't have minded at all. He was almost glad to have the Koopa Witch on the journey with him, and hoped she would find someone to take care of her buds while she was gone.

* * *

Mushroom Kingdom 

Mario stretched under the covers when he felt the sun across his face. It was time he woke up, and he and Peach had to prepare for their trip to Sugar Land. He sat up and wondered what they were going to have for breakfast, and was a bit surprised he was already hungry considering how much he scared down the night before.

"It's going to take a while to get used to this." He wondered how Luigi was able to adjust so well to the Koopa form. He scratched his head and was surprised he did not come across any horns. "I wonder," he held up his hand stared at the five slender, peach colored fingers. "I'm human again." He sat still for a few seconds longer. "I am human." He shouted and jumped out of the bed.

"What's going on?" Toad knocked on the door. "I heard you cheering down the hall."

"Come on in," Mario breathed in deeply. "I'm human again."

"That's great," Toad opened the door. "We still don't know—why you are naked?"

Mario stared at Toad's shocked expression and stared down at his body. He had nearly forgotten he had decided to sleep in the nude again. "Sorry about that." He was Thankful that it wasn't Toadette who had checked up on him.

The door closed. "I'm the one who is sorry."

"Don't worry, I will not make a habit of this." That is unless he turns into a Koopa again.

* * *

Toad and Toadette were finishing up their breakfast when Mario entered the dining hall after he had showered and dressed. He tried to avoid Toad's beady little eyes and smiled at Toadette. "So what is for breakfast?"

"Eggs benedict, " Toadsworth placed a plate with the breakfast down at the place that was set for Mario. "I take it you slept well, Master Mario?" The elderly Toad stared at him for a few seconds. Cleaned his glasses and stared again. "I see that you have returned to your natural form."

"All I needed was a good night's rest," Mario inhaled. "Where is Peach?"

"She is in her bedroom, pouting." Toadsworth answered. "She wanted to join you on your mission to Sugar Land, but I have forbidden it. She will help out by keeping in contact with the other kings, Queens, and Presidents."

"I see," Mario sat down and removed the lid. "I should say good bye to her after I eat."

"She has the door locked," Toadette said. "She isn't going to unlock her door for anyone. I'm going to try and cheer her up."

"How?" Mario asked before he took a bite of his breakfast.

"I'm going to bring up all my pretty polishes and we are going to give her a manicure. Once her fingernails are all nice and pretty she is going to feel much better."

"Well enough to discuss our communication strategy," Toad said. "Sorry Mario, but you are on your own." He winked at Toadette.

"What about Yoshi?" Mario asked. He could use the dinosaur's help.

"He is waiting for you outside," Toad said.

"You can try and say goodbye right next to her window," Toadette winked back at Toad. "She might wave to you, if she is in a good mood."

"I will even blow her a kiss." He hoped she would be in a good mood to accept it. That was the last thing he needed before going on another adventure, to have his fiancé angry at everything including him.

* * *

Mario found Yoshi, standing outside Peach's window. He was also prepared with two saddlebags flanking his sides.

"You're human again," Yoshi smiled. "When did this happen?"

"When I woke up," Mario explained. He was carrying a small knapsack with a few bare essentials. He had money for food, and Yoshi could help him catch fish and find fruit if they camped out in the woods. "I think it happened while I was sleeping, but I noticed when I woke up."

"Do you know what caused you to change?" Yoshi asked. "Or if it will happen again."

"I have no idea. All I know was that I was angry," Mario said. He was more than angry; he was infuriated at the idea that Luigi was willing to side with Bowser. The anger alone couldn't have triggered it. He did feel like something inside was trying to claw its way out into the open.

Yoshi nodded. "Oh look up."

Mario looked up at his vision of the sky was obstructed by the bright pink hem of Peach's dress, a pair of beautiful long legs and a pair of pink, lace trimmed panties. Mario felt his face heat up and he turned his head. "Yoshi."

"Sorry," Yoshi gasped. "I had no idea you would get that kind of view.

Mario could still feel the flush in his face as he stepped aside for Peach to land. "Sorry, Peach."

"Sorry about what?" Peach said once her feet touched the ground.

"Oh nothing," Mario stared at the ground and pressed his fingers together. "How many times are you going to do that?"

"As many times as I like," Peach folded her umbrella. She was also wearing a knapsack. "I have Toadette to cover me."

"Is she standing on Toad's shoulders?" Mario was impressed with how Peach's grandmother was able to cover for her when they went after the pieces of the star road. The elderly toad was as tall as Mario and he found out she stood on a footstool to reach Peach's exact height.

"No," Peach frowned. "She is standing on a stepstool. Toad said he was going to pose as both himself and dress up as Toadette, hopefully to throw off some suspicion."

"Poor Toad," Yoshi said. "Are we ready to go?"

Mario nodded. "Where is our first stop?"

"Gadd's mansion," Peach said. "Daisy wants to come along with us. She also said she has something to provide transportation."

* * *

Luigi shuffled his way through the woods, armed with nothing except for the small pack that he carried. He kept his eye out for question boxes that might have contained a fire flower, super leaf, a cape feather, or any possible power mushroom. Now that he was human again he could use such abilities.

"You haven't quite explained why we are in Boo Woods," Kammy asked. She only had her broom, wand, and a small mirror with her. "Is this the first leg of the trip, or are we looking for a Warp Pipe?"

"I need to see someone first," Luigi was going to tell Gadd and Daisy about his journey, plus he had to see if the professor had any gadgets that would help them along the way. He also needed to borrow the phone and contact Mario and find out if he had started his journey, also apologize for all the hurtful things he had said the day before.

"There is only one person who lives out here," Kammy retrieved her hat that was snagged on a low hanging branch. "The scientist, professor Gadd."

"He might have something we can use," Luigi said. "Plus I think you would want to see Iggy." He clamped a hand over his mouth. Neither she, nor Kamek knew that Iggy had been with Gadd for over the past month.

Kammy clucked her tongue. "Keeping secrets have we?" She folded her arms. "I had a feeling he was here. He kept calling me about a field research, but I had no exact idea. That was why I set up the wards, along with keeping a certain bad Koopa from using the Internet when he was grounded."

"You were the one who set up the wards?" He had thought it was Bowser's idea. If he knew it was Kammy then he might not have gone with the kidnapping of Peach.

"I set them up and both Kamek and Bowser watched them, Bowser wanted to know what his children were doing and wanted to see where Iggy and Larry were, but he never thought of intercepting the letters from Larry."

"I had no idea it was you."

"Would you have kidnapped Peach if you had?" Kammy raised her brows.

"How did you know?"

"I am an old woman, I know how to read people and I could see the regret on your face when you brought Peach into the throne room and I could see that she was also acting."

"Gig is up," Luigi sighed.

"What makes you think I am going to tell Bowser? I haven't told him about Iggy's field research, about where Larry had gone, nor did I tell him about Lemmy's girlfriend."

"Why?" Luigi paused at the outside gate.

"Bowser has never ordered me to spill everyone's secrets," Kammy opened the gate for them. "He has never asked me to reveal the secrets. I know Ludwig does not wish to assist his father in the capture of Peach, nor does anyone, save for Junior. Roy and Morton want to take over the Mushroom kingdom, but Roy would rather have Sky Land and Morton wants to do his show. Iggy just wants to work on his inventions. Ludwig is content with Dark Land. Wendy wouldn't mind ruling over Chocolate Island again and I am not certain what Larry and Lemmy want."

"So many possibilities with eight kids," Luigi ran ahead of her and up the path to the Helicopter where Iggy was working on it. "Hey Iggy, I brought someone who hasn't seen you in a while."

Iggy looked up from the engine of the copter. "Kammy?"

"I can see you have been hard at work," Kammy smiled at the helicopter.

"You don't know the half of it," Iggy exhaled. "Professor Gadd and I built a machine that was supposed to turn Luigi back into a human, but instead it turned Mario, Daisy and Peach into Koopas, but they turned back into a human the next day, and Luigi is now a human again."

"So that is what happened," Kammy folded her arms. "Mario turned into a Koopa again, last night when he was battling your father?"

"Dad needs to get a new hobby," Iggy rolled his eyes.

"Don't you go sassing your father like that," Kammy grabbed him by the snout. "Mario left a nasty bite on your father."

"Luigi is here?" Daisy stepped out of the house. She was wearing a pretty yellow blouse that resembled the top half of her gown, along with the blue jeans and her crown. "When Peach and Mario arrive we can leave." She set the two small suitcases down. "You are human again."

"Yeah," Luigi shrugged. "And Mario is a Koopa."

"You are kidding, right?" Daisy blinked. "Peach hadn't mentioned that when she called me last night."

"It's true," Luigi nodded. "I don't think anyone can explain it."

"Except for Professor Gadd," Iggy said.

"We can let the professor know," Daisy waved towards the direction of the gate. "Because they are here."

Luigi steeled his nerves. He had no idea what he and Mario are going to say to each other. He held his breath, closed his eyes and turned to the gate.

* * *

**A/N: **The names of some of the kings: Windbag, Ed, The Sultan, and Hugo are the names of kings from the SMB3 Cartoon. 


	25. Road Trip

**Chapter 25: Road Trip**

* * *

Luigi opened his eyes and Peach, Mario and Yoshi made their way up the path. His brother had returned to normal, and while that did relieve him in that he did not have to face off against a pissed off Koopa, he was curious on what changed him back, as well as why Mario transformed into a Koopa into a first place.

"You are here," Daisy greeted the newcomers in her most cheerful tone.

"Luigi?" Mario's eyes widened as he approached his brother.

"Mario," there were so many things he wanted to say to his brother and he blurted out the first string of words that came to his mind.

"You are human again," both he and Mario said at the same time.

"I've been reverting back into a human for the past few days," Luigi placed his hands in his pockets. "I guess it wasn't quite as noticeable as before."

"I noticed," Peach said. "When I was pounding on your shell. I noticed the spikes were almost gone. I didn't hurt your back, did I?"

Luigi shook his head. "No. It didn't hurt at all."

"Why did you turn into a Koopa again?" Iggy asked the question that was on everyone's minds. "Without the aid of the machine."

"I have no idea," Mario scratched the top of his head. "It just happened. I didn't even know I changed until we were halfway back to the castle."

"It's true," Yoshi nodded. "Mario thought he was still human and then he looked at his hands."

"There was still no explanation," Iggy chewed on his bottom lip. "It might be a side effect from the machine. We have come to the conclusion that instead of grabbing the right DNA codes from the other subjects and using them to change the central subject that it read and exchanged from everyone."

"And how do you explain Mario's transformation last night?" Peach asked.

"An odd side effect," Iggy shrugged.

"This is what you get for trying to use science to undo my magic," Kammy pointed at the young genius. "What have I told you about mixing the two?"

"You only said that mixing magics could end in a disastrous results."

"How did it look?" Daisy asked. "I mean to ask, what really happened when Mario changed."

"I just sent Roy to one of the chandeliers," Yoshi held out his hands as he described the scene. "Then Bowser grabbed me. Mario thought Luigi betrayed him. Mario growled and tackled Luigi, then he turned into a Koopa, bit Bowser and freed the Princess before we all ran out."

"Thinking about it, the whole scene is like something from the Hulk comics," Luigi said. "It was like, Mario angry, Mario Koopa out, Mario smash."

"Well I was that angry," Mario smiled sheepishly.

"I wish I could have seen it," Iggy said. "For scientific reasons of course."

"Including the part where he hurt your father?" Kammy asked. "If Mario still had his horns I would be grabbing one by now."

"Like I said, he needs a new hobby," Iggy folded his arms and looked up. He however did have horns and Kammy grabbed him by the left one. "Hey."

"What have I said about disrespecting your father?"

Peach cleared her throat and turned to Daisy. "You told me you were providing transportation, but I didn't know you were joining us."

"I always did want to go on an adventure," Daisy clasped her hands together. "You got to go on a few yourself. You even rescued Mario and Luigi once."

"We are only going to see what is going on in Sugar Land," Peach explained as she and Daisy walked off together.

"It probably will be another adventure," Luigi inhaled.

"Yeah," Mario nodded.

"Mario, I wanted to apologize for last night. I didn't mean a single word."

"I know now," Mario stared at his hands. "I'm sorry if I had hurt you."

"No, I didn't get hurt at all, nothing to serious." Luigi only felt the bruises when he touched them with his hands. "I was the one who slashed you."

"Based on instincts," Mario pointed at him before he shrugged. "I guess my actions were also based on instincts. I accept your apology if you accept mine."

"I do," he pulled Mario into an embrace.

"Does this mean you two will never fight again?" Yoshi had been watching them.

"You don't have a brother, do you?" Mario asked. Yoshi shook his head. "I thought so."

"I'm sorry," Iggy cried out. Kammy was still holding onto his horn. "Can you please let go?"

"Promise not to disrespect your father or your elders?" Kammy asked.

"I promise," Iggy pursed his lips. "Please let go."

"You better have learned," Kammy released her hold.

"Ouch," Iggy massaged the area where his horn met with skin. "You humans have no idea how that feels."

"I do," Luigi wiggled his fingers. Bowser only grabbed him once, but it had reminded him of the times he and Mario fought as children and their grandmother grabbed them by the ears until they let go. "It's the same as grabbing someone by the ears."

"When are we going?" Mario asked.

"I just need one last check," Iggy said. "And then we got to decide how we want to travel. The helicopter can only hold three and I'm the only one who knows how to fly it."

"I can carry two people," Yoshi said. "I've done it before."

"Can you carry two people, plus luggage?" Luigi asked. He didn't want to burden down his friend.

"I'm not certain," Yoshi glanced over his shoulder. "I might."

"It might slow us down," Kammy held out her broom. "I can carry someone with me. All they have to do is make sure they hold onto me."

"We can switch around," Luigi suggested. "The girls can ride with Iggy and I'll ride with Kammy."

"If you don't mind I would like to ride with Mario," Kammy prepared her broom.

"Okay," Iggy closed the lid over the motor. "Everything checks out, Peach, Daisy. We are ready to go."

"Keep on eye on them," Luigi climbed into Yoshi's saddle. "And let me know when you get hungry."

"When am I not hungry?" Yoshi asked.

"Good question," Luigi chuckled. "That is almost like asking when Mario isn't hungry."

"I heard that," Mario was sitting sidesaddle on the broom, right behind Kammy. "Don't drop me."

"I have never dropped anyone," Kammy told him. "Now hold on." She, Mario and the broom rose into the air.

* * *

Larry hadn't checked on the women in a while. Madam S hadn't said much, but then again she rarely talked. Silhouette on the other hand had a mouth, and right now it was silent. He looked over his shoulder and saw the cat girl leaning back as far as she could be, with her head resting against the window, mouth was slack and a little bit of drool was leaking out of the corner of her mouth.

"Kamron would love to get a picture," Larry whispered and checked on Madam S. She too was also leaning back, but he couldn't tell is she was asleep with that veil over her face. "I think they might both be a sleep."

"Are you certain?" Howls asked from behind the wheel.

"I can't be certain with Madam S."

"She needs her sleep if she will be driving soon." Howls said. He and the human would switch so that Howls could get some sleep. Larry took over for Squishy on the motorcycle so the large toad could also get some shut eye. "What about you, ready to drive the bike again?"

"I was born to ride," Larry said. He lost count of how many times he rode on Iggy's experimental bikes and the few times he took out one of his father's clown copters.

"You have license?"

Larry shook his head. "I'm too young, but I have plenty of experience."

Howls nodded. "You have plenty of fighting experience. Where did you learn how to fight?"

"My father taught me," Larry hoped he did not rouse too much suspicion with the information he gave the old toad. "He's the ruler of Dark Land, that is where I live."

"You never told me you were a prince."

"I never felt like one," Larry shrugged. " Our Father taught us how to fight and me, my brothers and sister, and father fought against these two brothers. You might have heard of them, the Mario brothers."

"I don't think I have," Howls shook his head.

"I guess they are not as well known up here," Larry heard some stirring in the back and checked, only to see Madam S adjust herself before she drifted off to sleep again. "I never wanted to ask her, because it would seem rude, but why does she wear that veil?"

"She has photosensitivity," Howls explained. "She gets a bad rash in direct sunlight. She has several medical problems."

"That is why she needs the medicine and the sleeping chamber?" Larry asked. They had made several stops. While they refueled and bought more ice for the cooler they plugged in what Larry and his friends had thought was a tanning bed. They later found out that Madam S had to sleep in it for at least two hours, in addition the cooler contained several small bottles of a medicine drink for her.

"Don't get her wrong, she is a skilled fighter, one of the best. She was nearly dying when I found her and once she was back to the right health I could see her strength and skills."

"I've seen her use a fire flower."

"She can use fire flowers, ice flowers, power mushrooms, super leaves and feathers."

"Most humans can."

Howls nodded again. "Most humans can, but they do not have the skill lever she has." He frowned. "Getting low on fuel again. We can charge the bed, get some ice and switch out. I don't know about you, but my back teeth are floating."

* * *

Mario had gotten over his shock and fear of flying on a broomstick with Kammy after a half hour. She flew fast, almost faster than Iggy's helicopter and he could tell she was holding back to make certain everyone stayed together and no one outran or out flew anyone else.

"Are you going to be quiet through out the whole trip?" Kammy asked minutes after they had finished lunch.

"No, not that I am finally used to this," He stared down and could see Yoshi and Luigi racing on the ground beneath them.

"Tell me what is on your mind," Kammy said.

"I have a lot on my mind," Mario wasn't lying. His first thought was on the journey, followed by Luigi. He also thought about his transformation and of Peach and their upcoming wedding.

"What would you like to talk about?"

"I want to know why you are helping us," Mario asked.

"Bowser asked me to go with Luigi. You are also thinking about last night."

He nodded. "I never thought I'd turn back into a Koopa again. I can't remember the last time I was that angry and the next thing I know I had Luigi pinned to the ground, I was throwing fire at Bowser. I bit his arm, lashed my claws at him and then freed the princess. I told my friends that I thought I was throwing fire balls, and wasn't breathing any fire."

"You were blinded by your rage to even feel that you were changing?" Kammy asked.

"Yeah," Mario remembered feeling an itch and a few pains. "I thought the biting and the scratching was human instinct. I have heard of people who were in fights result to biting and scratching at their opponents."

"As for chewing and clawing through the rope?" Kammy asked.

"That I don't know."

"Have you ever thought this might be a new gift?"

"You mean like the raccoon suit or the ghost mushroom?" Mario asked. The thought had never crossed his mind. It would help him fight enemies better. "I have to figure out how to use it. It doesn't just appear when I eat something or touch something."

"I believe that is something that you have to figure out on your own."

Mario stared at his hands. He imagined them scaly and ending in claws. He closed his eyes and tried to picture his feet ripping through his shoes, a spiked shell growing on his back, his mouth lengthening into a snout and filling with sharp teeth. He imagined it, but he didn't feel it.

He tried to use the anger that had worked before. He thought of several scenarios that made him angry in the past, Bowser kidnapping Peach, Bowser kidnapping himself and Luigi, Luigi throwing his favorite record into the fire. Larry and Roy tying to turn Luigi into scrambled eggs and the possible idea of Luigi betraying him.

He opened his eyes and saw that he was still the same. Oh well, he would try again.

"What are you doing?" Kammy asked.

"I'm trying to turn into a Koopa again."

"Try it after we landed for the night, a physical transformation may cause us to crash."

They were silent for a few more hours before Kammy spoke again. "You still don't have much to say."

"Sorry if I am not the great conversationalist," Mario said. "But you are technically the enemy."

"So that is the way it is going to be," she shook her head. "I thought you were going to talk about your upcoming wedding."

"Luigi told you?"

"He told Bowser, who told everyone. Where will you have the ceremony?"

"Well we thought about—wait a second," he almost forgot who he was dealing with for a second. "If I tell you, what is going to keep you from telling Bowser?"

"There is no way," she chuckled. "And yes if he does ask then I would tell him."

"Thanks for being honest," he increased his grip around her waist. "How am I going to be certain that you are not going to try and kill me?"

"Lets just say your new ability has piqued my interest in you," she noticed the face Mario was making. "Not in that way. You may be more useful alive than dead."

"Great."

"Has Luigi told you we have seen your past and your parents in my crystal?"

"No he hasn't," Mario shook his head. Why hadn't Luigi mentioned he had seen their past?

"Your parents were named Angela and Lucio Segali."

"Wait, our last name is actually Segali?" He had always thought it was Mario, the same as his first name. Were the citizens of the mushroom kingdom going to call them the Segali brothers?

"I guess your mother forgot it in the letter she gave to the Lakitu."

"A Lakitu brought us to New York?" That would have caused a commotion, except people in New York rarely ever looked up.

"Your mother loved living in the Mushroom World, but there was so much danger. It wasn't long after the Shroob invasion when the vampire lord Nosferus tried to come after you. He sent a minion after you before, but your parents and their neighbors defeated him. He later came after you again, with his own army, Mario I am sorry to tell you this, but your father died in that battle."

"What about our mother?" He could understand why she sent them to Brooklyn, despite all the troubles that city had there were no Koopas, or Shroobs or Vampires to hurt them.

"That I do not know," Kammy shook her head. "I had nearly collapsed from exhaustion at that point."

"Why didn't Luigi ask again?"

"He wanted to make certain that I was rested." Kammy sighed. "You can ask him once we have landed

"I will," Mario frowned. He had to know about his mother, maybe Kammy could show them another vision, and he was going to find out some way.

* * *


	26. The Underground

**Chapter 26: The Underground**

* * *

"Looks like we are stopping here for the night," Luigi had spotted the helicopter lowering itself for a landing. They made sure there was enough fuel an hour ago and were a little surprised they were able to find a place that would provide fuel for an aircraft.

"I love camping," Yoshi was keeping up just fine. True he had been on several longer trips, but on those trips he hadn't been weighed down with saddlebags, nor did Mario or Luigi wear a fully packed knapsack.

"The trees are full of fruit," Luigi examined some of the nearby trees. He wasn't sure what kind they were, but they looked like persimmons. The branches were drooping from their weight.

"I love fruit," Yoshi licked his lips. "Especially fresh fruit."

"There is plenty of that my friend," Luigi gave the dinosaur a gentle pat on the back of his head.

They caught up with the others just as the whirling blades of Iggy's helicopter had slowed down and Kammy had landed. Mario almost didn't wait for their feet to touch before he slid off the broom and landed on his backside.

"Never, never slide of a broom," Kammy instructed once her feet and touched the ground. "You can't always be certain if the broom stick has been sanded down, and treated. I once had a student who had to be rushed to the medical wing of the castle because he slid off, and ended up with a splinter that was the length of a human thumb wedged into his spell bag."

Luigi knew what she really meant by when she said spell bag and wanted to cross his own legs. He glanced at Yoshi who also shuddered out of sympathy for the student.

"If it is out of any condolences I did hurt my behind," Mario was rubbing his backside.

"I'm surprised it hurt," Luigi could never resist a chance to tease his brother about his height or his weight. "I thought you had enough padding down there."

"Hey, I wouldn't talk if I were you," Mario poked him in the stomach and pulled back. "Did that get smaller?"

"Yeah," Luigi hadn't really noticed since his transformation back into a human. "I guess I lost a little weight from all that wrestling."

"I'm going to lose a lot of weight if I don't get any food," Yoshi whimpered. "I can smell all the fruit and hear it drop on the ground, so much sweet and good food is going to a waste."

"Don't worry Yoshi," Peach said as she and Daisy were removing one of the folded up tents. "Once we have camp set up we can have dinner."

"How many tents did you bring?" Luigi ran over to help Iggy pull out another one.

"We brought three," Iggy said. "How many did you bring?"

"I think we forgot," Mario pulled out the third one. "Then again, Toadsworth told me Peach wasn't coming. I should have known she was going to try and sneak out."

"I hope no one told him where I was," Daisy said after she and Peach had set the tent down. "He insists that I stay in the castle when I'm in the Mushroom Kingdom."

"How come your father lets you go as you please?" Peach asked.

Daisy shrugged. "I have no idea."

Luigi had a feeling he knew why. Aside from that one time with Tatanga, Daisy never gets kidnapped. and certainly not an almost monthly basis like Peach. He can't even remember the last time Sarasaland was under any sort of attack.

"Just lay them all there," Kammy said of the tents. "I will set them up."

"With what?" Iggy asked. "A simple wave of your wand?"

Kammy gave him a look that caused the Koopa genius to gulp before she pointed her wand at the tents. She muttered a small chant. Glittering light shot out from the jewel like end of the wand. Stakes shot into the ground and were lassoed by the chords. The tents sprang up and remained there, nice and sturdy.

"The women should get the big one," Mario said.

"Sounds fair," Luigi nodded. "You and Yoshi can bunk in one and Iggy and I can sleep in the other."

Mario nodded. "Now that we got the tents up, how about we find some dinner."

"Yes," Yoshi jumped up.

"Shouldn't we check in with the others first?" Peach asked. Yoshi let out a sigh and sat back down. "I'm also hungry, but Toad and Toadette are probably worried."

"Do you have a way to call?" Kammy removed the hand held mirror from her pocket.

"I have my phone," Mario held up his bright red cell.

Kammy tapped the top of her mirror with the wand. "Wendy." She whispered into the cool reflective surface and waited.

"Kammy?" Wendy's voice could be heard coming from mirror. "Where are you two?"

"I am not certain," Kammy answered. "We are some place north of Grass Land. We still have miles to go before we can reach Sugar Land."

"Wendy," Luigi leaned over Kammy's shoulder. Wendy was as lovely as ever. He may have been human but she was still as beautiful to him as when he was a Koopa.

"Hello Luigi," Wendy smiled when she saw him. "Have you been traveling well?"

"Very well," Luigi nodded. "We are not alone. Your brother, Iggy is with us, and Daisy, Peach, Mario, and Yoshi."

"I have a feeling you are not all going to try and take over another land," she chuckled. "I never really heard of this Sugar Land before."

"Some of its citizens have tried to contact Morton through his show," Luigi said. "From what I could tell is they are building an army."

"Who are they going to war with?"

"We have no idea," Luigi shook his head.

"It sounds more like they are preparing to conquer a neighboring land." Kammy pursed her beak. "I should inform Bowser of this."

"We can't jump the gun," Luigi put his hand on hers. "Not just yet. Wendy, I need you to ask Morton to let you know if he gets anything else from Sugar Land."

"I will," Wendy nodded.

"Have you been eating well? Sleeping well?" Luigi asked.

"I did take a small nap." She laughed. "It hasn't even been a full day. You sound like you haven't seen me for weeks."

"I feel like we have," Luigi was glad that Mario was still busy on the phone and couldn't hear him. He was certain he would not ever hear the end of the teasing from his brother. "I just want to make certain that you and our egg are all right."

"We are," Wendy ran her fingers down her stomach. "It's almost dinner time."

"I will contact you in the morning," Kammy said before she gave the mirror another tap.

"Bye Wendy," Luigi said as Wendy's image faded from view. "I love you."

* * *

Several bumps and shakes roused Larry from his nap. He wasn't even aware that he had fallen asleep. He opened his eyes to see they had driven off the road and were traveling through grass and shrubs and who knows what else.

"Earthquake?" Kamron sat up in the back seat. With Madam S in her pod and Silhouette riding with Squishy there was plenty of room for him to stretch out.

"Not an earthquake son," Howls told him. "We are just taking a different route."

"You want to take a different path?" Larry asked. He had no idea if they were near their destination. The last time he checked the sign had said fifty miles until they had reached Symphony City.

"We have to," Howls frowned. "The God Damned military has set up roadblocks. No one is allowed in."

"Isn't that a good thing?" Kamron yawned.

"It could be and don't get me wrong, I'm glad they have finally gotten off their butts to go and try to help kill these undead sons of a bitches. I just wished they didn't get in other peoples way."

"Huh?" Kamron asked.

"During they night they use every freaking bit of arsenal they own to search and destroy every one of them, during the day they are working to help every one who is still alive and not tainted to get the hell out."

"What is wrong with that?" Larry watched as Squishy and Silhouette zipped in front of them.

"Nothing except they are trying to kick out the fighters, people like us. There are teams who have started to fight inside the city even before the military joined and those who have managed to get in before everything was barricaded off. The main problem is the military and the civilian fighters have been arguing so much they aren't getting anything done."

Larry took in the information. "And what is going to stop us from fighting with the military as well?"

"We will stick with the underground," Howls frowned. "We will be like them, sleep during the day and attack at night."

"I have a question," Kamron said. "How do you know all this?"

Howls tapped the radio. "I've been listening to broadcasts while you slept. They informed me about the military and the stubborn fighters. Madam S, Squishy and I have also spoken with the fighters through the Internet"

They droved another large bump and Larry bit down on his tongue. "Is this good for Madam S?"

"Don't worry, she can sleep through almost everything."

"Where are we going?" Kamron asked. "Inside a super secret entrance?"

"It aint super," Howls answered. "But it is a secret."

The drove over the rocky terrain for several more minutes until they came up to a ravine with what seemed like a warp pipe sticking on the other side.

"We are going to warp our way into the city?" Kamron asked.

"Warp?" Howls raised his thick eyebrows. "What the hell are you two talking about?"

"I thought that is a warp pipe," Larry pointed at the entrance. "And we are about to drive right into it." He watched as Squishy and Silhouette rode right into the pipe.

"I don't know what the hell that is, but this is an over sized sewage drain."

"We are going to drive in the sewers?" Kamron asked.

"What's wrong? I thought you teenage turtle kids like the sewers."

Larry scowled at the remark and didn't say anything. He wanted to see where this was going.

Everything inside was dark; the headlights of the truck picked up the motorcycle and followed after them as they drove the twisting and winding tunnels. Larry was amazed at the size of the sewers and wondered how long it had been there. He knew nothing about the entire nation of Harmony Land, only having to fight in Tempo Town and Half Note Bay in the past.

They came to a stop where there were a few other vehicles, right by what appeared to have been the bottom half of a large building that had fell through the ground.

"What is that?" Larry stared at the building.

"You two are certainly not from around here," Howls noted and chuckled. "This building was the first public library that was built in this city. There was an earthquake thirty years ago that caused it and a few other buildings to sink. The city did not have much choice but to build over it."

"So this is the secret underground base," Silhouette stared at it in wonder. "Why didn't you guys come here sooner?"

"We heard you guys were heading this way," Squishy explained. "The News reports were tracking your progress and we had a feeling you didn't know how to get here."

"This is a real piece of history," Howls approached the double doors. He raised the cane and tapped the bottom against the bottom several times in a pattern. The door opened. "The password is Captain Lou."

"Come in side," a teenager in a gray hoodie and black jeans opened the door.

"What about Madam S?" Kamron asked.

"She will wake up when she is ready," Howls said.

"I think he means if we are going to leave her," Squishy said.

"Of course not," Howls shook his head. "We are going to need several people to help transfer her and her pod, and we need to bring in the cooler."

"I'm on it," the teenager nodded. "Several hunting teams are out there, taking care of the problem, but there is plenty still here to help out."

Larry stepped in and saw that it was a large, four floors with long stairs that lead to each floor. The walls were lined with books. The areas where there used to be windows were all boarded up. There were several desks, and small padded chairs and sofas.

"You are going to have to find a spot on the floor to sleep," the teen said.

"Thanks," Larry looked up at the light fixtures. "How do you keep this place lit up?"

"We have our ways," the teen shrugged. "We have enough electricity for cooking and keeping the air circulated, and we can keep things nice and cool."

Larry had found a place for him and his friends, next to the magazine racks on the second floor of the library. He had brought in the sleeping bags from the back of Howl's truck and set them down while the others helped with Madam S and her pod.

"I know one thing for certain," he stared at the shelves. "You will never run out of stuff to read here."

He examined the magazines. Some were news and political based, some were health based, there were several based on sports and nature and style and entertainment. He tried not to laugh at the fashions from the past, although a few appeared to have been recent. There were even a few he had seen in Wendy's room. He grabbed one and read the date. It was from three months ago.

"Some have bring in our own from the outside," one of the fighters had sensed his confusion. "We consider it a bit of a donation."

"That would explain it," he set the magazine back and checked out several others and read the dates from each one.

"You might find a pleasant surprise in the back."

Larry walked around to the back. There were more of the recent stuff in the back, more fashion, more movies, and women. Larry's eyes widened when he saw they were naked women. "Hey Kamron come up here."

"In a minute," Kamron and Squishy were bringing in the cooler.

"There is porn up here," Larry grinned. He'll be able to look at all the naked women he wanted to without the fear of Kammy grabbing his horn, or Wendy calling him a sexist pig.

"The good kind?" Kamron asked, earning a chuckle from Squishy.

"Yeah, lots of naked women."

"What kind of women?"

"Let me check," he examined the different covers and pulled one out of a blond Koopa woman. "They got Koopas, humans, toads, Beanish, more cat women." These cat women were not like Silhouette. They had pelts similar to Rusty. "I think I'm going to like crashing here for a bit."

The magazine was ripped out of his hands. "We are all busy and you are looking at naked women?" Silhouette stared at the title.

"Yeah," Larry shrugged.

Silhouette frowned. "Are they're any with naked men?"

"I haven't checked."

"You two can check later," Howls called up to them. "I suggest you kids and Squishy take a nap. I will wake you up in a few hours."

"Well you heard him," Silhouette rolled up the magazine and gave Larry a small bop on the head with it before she put it back. "We need to preserve our energy." She found a spot on the floor and lay down.

Larry sat down on another sleeping bag. It wasn't cold enough to crawl inside. He yawned and curled up, and hoped Howls would be a little generous before he wakes them.

* * *

Larry did not feel the end of Howls cane rouse him from sleep. Instead it was a cold hand that smelled like a mixture of talcum powder and lilacs. "Silhouette?" He mumbled.

"It isn't Silhouette," the voice belonged to Madam S. She had her veil pulled back.

"Oh," Larry rolled onto his back and stared into her odd colored eyes. "Howls said he was going to wake us."

"Howls is working on a battle strategy," Madam S brushed her fingers against Kamron's shoulders. "He asked me to wake you up."

"I'm glad," Larry yawned. "I figured he would smack us with his cane or kick us in the head."

"He is rough around the edges," she nodded before she shook Kamron's shoulder even more. "He did see some of his own family murdered right before his own eyes."

"Yeah but you are a lot nicer," Larry said. Kamron blinked his eyes and slipped on his glasses. "And your whole family is dead." Larry wished he hadn't said it. "I'm sorry."

"That is not exactly true," Madam S moved onto Silhouette and gave the girl just one nudge before Silhouette yawned and stretched. "The only one I am certain is my husband and several friends. I have no idea about my children, my own parents, or my brother and sister."

"Then why did you say everyone?"

She looked down. "I was cut off from them. I had to in order to protect them. Because of the vampires I was never able to see them again."

"Hey Squishy," Silhouette massaged the large toad's shoulder. "We have to wake up now."

"What?" Squishy sat up. "Where is Howls?"

"About to start the meeting," Larry rose to his feet. "That was what Madam S said and he knew we had to be there."

It had only taken minutes before everyone woke up and gathered at the center of the first floor. Howls stood on one of the tables and struck at the surface with his cane. "All right, everyone shut your trap and listen."

"Who put you in charge, old man?" One of the other hunters asked.

"Someone needs to be in charge around here." Howls raised his sunglasses and stared down at him.

"We've been listening to Avery," the same kid said. "He have been leading us before you came."

"Where is he?" Howls asked. "Cause he is not here to challenge me."

'Great,' Larry placed a hand against his forehead. 'He is going to start a fight and that is the last thing we need. Didn't he complain earlier about everyone being to busy quarrelling with each other to get anything done? This is not going to help our cause.'

"They are out hunting."

"Hunting," Howls nearly spat. "More likely they are going to get themselves exposed. You have been doing damn well on your own, but now you got the military, and it seems with the two of you combined you still can't flush theses bastards out of city."

"We don't want to flush them," a man in his mid thirties said. He had reddish brown hair slicked back on his head, and was dressed entirely in black, including the hooded cloak that seemed to float around him. "We want to destroy them."

"That is Avery," a toad girl said.

"So you are Avery," Howls leaned against his cane. "I have seen you have made quite the progress."

"Crap," Larry turned to his friends. "Anyone want to calm him down?"

"I'll try," Squishy waved to grab Howls attention, with no luck.

"You seem to be quite bold to be making such statements," Avery folded his arms. The man had a wiry frame a narrow chin and a hooked nose.

"I probably know more about how these bastards function than you do," Howls clenched his hands into fists. "Damn young people think they know a hell lot more than anyone else these days."

"Howls stop," Madam S struck her hand on the table. "You are making a fool out of yourself and everyone."

Howls stared at her, then at Avery before he relaxed. "I am sorry."

"Wow," Larry gasped. "He does respect her."

"I can understand if you are riled up," Avery pressed his fingers against each other. "We are looking for more fighters, and you must have known about the knock and the password."

"Yelling at each other isn't going to do us any damn good," Howls sat down on the table. "What do you know?"

"The military fights at night, mostly on the capitol building while we go around looking for the vampire's headquarters," Avery explained.

"Their headquarters isn't in the capitol building?" Larry asked. It seemed like that would have been the most likely location for the enemy.

"Nope," Avery shook his head. "It is not in the capitol, or in the tallest building or in any elaborate mansion. It isn't where you would think it would be. There were several vampires, zombies, harpies and ghosts in those areas, but that is not where their leader is located."

"Do you know where?" Howls asked.

"We just found out," Avery smiled. "Their location is in the grand theater, and once all the teams have returned we will begin our assault there tonight."

"Shouldn't we wait for the next night?" Kamron asked. "What if the others teams don't return until near dawn."

"He has a point," The teen in the Hoodie said.

"I have one question," Larry was wondering why everyone had to wait until after dark to fight. "Why not fight during the day? We know were they are, why not just go in?"

"No good," Avery shook his head. "The military would have spotted us, rounded us up and kicked us out of the city."

"Why don't you tell them about the theater?" Kamron asked.

"They won't listen to us, this is why we have to attack at night."

"Why don't we sneak in from below?" Larry asked. If Mario and Luigi could do it then so could he. "We take the sewers and climb in from the pipes. I know these two plumbers who do it all the time."

Avery stared at him for several minutes. "The only problem is the spirits that may be patrolling the area for us."

"That is where we come in," Howls grinned. "We have a secret weapon that will get us past the ghosts."

"So are we going to launch a surprise daytime attack?" Larry asked.

Avery nodded. "We will let the other teams know, until then we need to find the map of the city and the blueprints of the plumbing."

* * *

**A/N: Merry Christmas**


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27: Battle**

* * *

"Mario" 

The voice was like the wind, thin and pleasant and also distant. Mario grunted in his sleep and rolled over.

"Mario" 

"Yoshi?" Mario reached over to the dinosaur and felt Yoshi's stomach. "Yoshi was that you?"

"Mario come out" 

The voice was almost eerie and it would have been if it hadn't belonged to Peach. He had no idea why she was calling out to him in the middle of the night.

"Be right back buddy," Mario crawled out from his sleeping bag and stepped out of the tent. "Peach?"

"I'm over here," Peach beckoned him with her finger. "Come and catch me." She turned around and ran off.

"What is she playing?" Mario snickered. She wanted to be alone with him, that was it. He put on his shoes and ran after her.

He stopped when he had found her dress hanging from a few branches in one of the trees.

"Mario," Peach covered his eyes from behind. "You found me."

"Yeah," Mario turned around. Every rational thought had oozed out of his skull when he saw Peach, standing before him in only her underwear. "Uh."

"Uh?" she kissed him. It lasted for a few minutes.

"Yeah," Mario had felt his whole face flush. He closed his eyes as she leaned forward again. This time their kiss lasted longer. His hands brushed against her shoulders and slid down to her breasts. He felt something else, something clawing at the back of his mind. It was the same feeling he felt before he had tackled Luigi in Bowser's fortress.

"Take me," Peach whispered.

"Do you want to wait?" Mario asked. He shouldn't have asked her this. He hadn't waited.

She shook her head. "I want the honeymoon to be memorable, not painful and I have heard the first time was painful."

"It will be painful out here," Mario did not let go of her. His mind was struggling with the clawing feeling. A voice from within was telling him to give in and become a Koopa again.

"Maybe if I wasn't human," Peach stepped backwards and turned around. Her body turned pale orange. She doubled over as a pink shell grew on her back followed by her tail. Her feet shifted in shape. Toes merged into three before claws grew. Her cries mixed in with growls.

Mario couldn't fight the feeling any more. He removed his clothes as fast as possible before the transformation started.

"Mario," Peach grabbed onto him again and kissed the side of his snout. "Take me now."

"Yes," Mario spun around and kissed her.

* * *

The sunlight sliced through the opening in the tent and landed on Luigi's eyes. He blinked from the feeling of the warmth before he sat up. It was time to wake up, and his stomach told him it was time for breakfast.

"Morning," He mouthed to Iggy who was still asleep before he put on his shoes, gloves and hat.

He wasn't the first person to wake up. Kammy was kneeling next to the fire with a pail of water and several round rocks. She waved her wand over the rocks. Circles and squares bounced out onto the rocks and changed them into eggs.

"Morning," Luigi greeted with a yawn.

"Good morning," she waved the wand over the bucket. The water grew thicker and turned white. "Yoshi is gathering more fruit. I thought we could also have some eggs and milk with our breakfast."

"Sounds good," Luigi nodded. "Iggy is still asleep."

"So is Daisy," Kammy said. "I don't know where Peach and Mario are, but I assume they are together."

"They are not in their tents?" Luigi turned towards the direction of the twigs snapping and saw Mario and Peach walking back to camp. They were holding each other's hands and Peach had a few twigs and leaves in her hair.

"Back from your walk?" Kammy asked.

"Yeah," Mario had a dreamy far off look in his eyes.

Oh they did not just sneak off somewhere to make love, but the way they were smiling and the glow Peach had in her face told him otherwise. She was also rubbing the back of her neck.

"I think you missed one," Luigi removed a small twig that was ensnarled in the back of Peach's hair. He stared down at the back of her neck and noticed the familiar bite mark of a Koopa. "Mario, can I see you in your tent? Now?"

"Sure," Mario exchanged a kiss with Peach before he followed his brother.

"What were you thinking?" Luigi asked as soon as Mario crawled inside.

"What?" Mario tried to play dumb.

"Don't ask me what. You were a Koopa again."

"Yeah," Mario shrugged.

"And you couldn't have waited?" Luigi folded his arms.

"To become a Koopa?"

"No, with what you did with Peach."

"Oh," he smiled. "She also became a Koopa."

Luigi closed his eyes. "Its not that. Grandma Mia would be rolling in the grave if she knew that you and Peach had sex before you were married."

"Don't give me that," Mario frowned. "You didn't exactly wait yourself."

"We didn't engage ourselves until after we had exchanged rings." Luigi said.

"Not you and Wendy. You lost it back when we were living in Brooklyn, unless you were lying about you and Lily Fatelli and you told me it was three times."

"Yeah," Luigi felt himself blush at the memory of his old girlfriend. "The first time was the night after the circus."

"I don't think I will ever forget that night," Mario smiled. "I mean that circus."

"You were stuffing your face through out the whole show, at least until a certain performance involving that ape." He remembered that night. Lily had grabbed his hand at the end of the first clown act and she had that look of desire in her eyes. He almost forgot Mario was sitting next to him and inhaling handful after handful of popcorn.

"Forget the ape," Mario shuddered. "I wish I could forget him, but I will never forget her." Mario had nearly dropped the bucket of popcorn when a beautiful teenager with long brown hair stepped into the spotlight. "My first. I'm happy for her. She has her husband and her arcade business, and little Maria." He and Pauline would always be friends. She and her family were the only ones in Brooklyn who knew about the mushroom kingdom, and she asked Mario to be Maria's godfather. He shook his head. "I haven't been a virgin for a long time, unless your are angry at me on Peach's behalf I suggest that you lay off."

"Sorry," Luigi stared at his hands. "I guess I'm just angry that you were able to turn into a Koopa again, and I have been trying. I miss being a Koopa."

"What?" Mario stared at him. "I thought you were happy to be human again."

"I thought that was what I had wanted," Luigi shrugged. "There are several advantages in being a Koopa."

"You might be able to change again," Mario gave him a pat on the shoulder. "The professor said it was an exchange with our cells and yours."

"Maybe," Luigi shrugged.

"Come on, let's get some breakfast."

* * *

Larry did not have any doubts about the plan, not until they were near where the theater was supposed to be and they came across several Shadow ghosts. There weren't just a handful; there were dozens.

"Okay," the kid in the hoodie swallowed. "How are we going to get past those ghosts?"

"By becoming ghosts ourselves," Howls dropped the large burlap sack he had carried. He made certain that each group of hunters had also received a bag. He reached in a pulled out a glowing white mushroom. "Here you go." He handed it to Silhouette.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" She stared at the mushroom.

"Eat it," he handed another one to Madam S.

"I'm not eating this," she stared at the mushroom.

"Those are magic mushrooms," Kamron recognized before Larry. "They are found all over the mushroom kingdom, and on other planets." There was a rumor that Mario came back with several different mushrooms and Peach sent them out to other kingdoms for cultivation.

"There is a time and a place to get high," Silhouette stared at the shroom. "Unless you mean it is going to make me bigger or it's going to heal me."

"These are the good kind," Madam S placed her mushroom in her mouth and started to chew.

"Okay, not sure how this is going to effect me. I'm only half human." Silhouette started to eat her mushroom.

"The half is enough," Howls handed more to Squishy and to a few of the other toads and humans that had accompanied them.

"It's starting to work," Madam S was whiter than usual, and she was glowing. She closed her eyes before she was engulfed into a small cloud of smoke. When the smoke dissipated there was a Boo wearing a veil. "This is new." Her voice seemed to have an echo.

"What did you do?" Silhouette gasped. "You killed her, and you killed me and everyone." She turned white. "You crazy old-" the smoke cut her off. "Toad." She was like Madam S, except she had pointed cat ears and the tapered point was as long as her tail.

"Those are ghost mushrooms," Kamron said. "They don't kill people. They just turn them into Boo's temporarily."

"He's right," Howls said as several more people and toads turned into Boos. "Stay out of any lighted areas and be careful when you open up the vials of pure water, splash some on you and you will turn back."

"How do we access our weapons?" One of the new Boos asked.

"Just think of the weapon you want and reach inside yourself," Squishy said. He still had his thick eyebrows and chin. "Like this." He reached into his center and pulled out a vial of pure water.

"Not enough mushrooms for everyone," Howls stared into the empty bag. "The Boos will go in first and take care of the other ghosts."

"Follow me," Madam S led the group.

Every Boo had a bottle of pure water in their hands. They floated above the Shadows and dumped the contents of the vials on the other ghosts, destroying them in an instant.

"They can float through," Howls said. "We are going to have to access through the pipes."

* * *

Larry clung to Kamron's robes as they walked through the lower levels of the theater. Everywhere there were zombies, lying on their sides and unmoving. During the day they are just corpses. It is only at night do they become reanimated, or that was the story. They might resume life if they knew he and the others were around.

"How long can you keep up the spell?" Howls asked. Kamron had summoned up a shield of invisibility around them.

"This is an easy one," Kamron kept his wand up. "It will last about an hour. I don't know if that will be enough."

"We found em," Silhouette floated through the wall. "We have found the coffins."

"Not so loud," Howls brought a finger to his lips.

"Sorry," she placed her hands over her face. "Follow me."

She led them towards a large room. Several caskets were on the ground surrounded by several sleeping zombies. Larry wondered why there were no ghosts until he stepped in a puddle of water.

"There is a lot of people to stake," Kamron said.

"Those shrooms are making it easy for us," Silhouette pointed to a few Boos as they flew into some of the caskets. They opened up for a few seconds and closed before the Boos floated out carrying stakes. "You see?"

"They have no idea," Howls chuckled. "It makes things seem almost too easy."

"Like keeping a certain casket away from the others?" Larry pointed to one casket set far apart from the nest. It was also the only one covered in black velvet and surrounded by several sleeping harpies. "I bet that is where the master is sleeping."

"They want to save that one for last," Howls said. "I don't think there is a way to kill him without waking up the harpies."

A thundering roar came from one of the other rooms.

"That's where Madam S had gone," Silhouette pointed towards where the roar came from.

Larry turned to the room and then backs to the master Coffin. The harpies were stirring. Groans emitted from the floor and several zombies sat up.

Another coffin opened and female vampire sat up. " When did Boos join us?" She looked around. Her eyes widened when several Boos floated from other coffins, still holding on to their stakes. "Treacherous Boos." She hissed. "Attack the Boos."

"Time to fight," Howls aimed his rifle at the nearest zombie and blasted his brains out.

Larry fired another salt rock at another zombie when he heard the roar again. "She's facing whatever it is alone. I'm going after her."

"You won't be covered," Kamron told him.

"I don't care," Larry ran towards the direction of the roar and entered another large room.

There was a strange wheel like object in one corner of the room, but Larry's eyes were drawn to the monster in the center, behind a throne like chair. It looked like a cross between a werewolf and a dragon. The bulk of its body almost reached the roof. It had four heads attached to long necks and three of them were snapping at Madam S. The fourth was half hanging off its neck by a thick flap of bleeding flesh.

Madam S was flying around, trying to swerve out of the way of the heads while she wielded a blood stained machete.

Larry aimed his rocket launcher at the center of the beast and fired.

"No," Madam S flew to the one hanging head and whacked again. "Fafrenirs can only be killed when you cut off all the heads." She swung the blade again; this time taking off the head completely.

"Oh of course," Larry sighed. Something like that couldn't be easy to destroy. He aimed his launcher at it again and fired. He missed. He glared at the swirling necks and the glowing green eyes of the monster. He fired again. This time he struck one, right through the neck.

"What the hell is that?" A boo with Avery's nose flew in.

"Fafrenir," Larry explained as he aimed his launder at the one head again. He hadn't destroyed it, but it was slowing down. "You have to remove the heads." He fired again and almost took the head off.

The monster retaliated with a swipe from its immense paw. Larry barely jumped back in time to avoid the curved hook like claws on the beast.

"I see," Avery reached into his body and pulled out two blades. He sliced at one head while Madam S cut at another.

Larry fired again. He hit the center of the head. It was enough distraction for Madam S to get a good and clean cut off it. The monster swung its body around and waved its tail. Larry tried to duck but the tail smacked him and sent him sprawling back. He winced from the sting left by the spines.

He felt warm sticky blood ooze out from the puncture wounds. 'Come on,' he told himself. He couldn't just sit there and deal with his pain, not when there was a monster like that around.

Hot fetid breath fogged his vision and he rolled away before being snatched up by the monster's large paw. Larry fired his weapon and left a bleeding, smoking hole in the center of the paw before he stood back up. He aimed at a third head that was still half way on and fired. The shot was enough to remove it from its neck

With a few swipes of their blades, Madam S and Avery were able to take care of the fourth head.

"I got this one," Avery sliced through the sinew of the first head Larry had struck. The second the last head fell the body fell forward and collapsed on the chair, crushing it with it's huge weight. Dark blood oozed out of the severed ends.

Larry placed his launcher on the ground and leaned against it as he tried to catch his breath. He tried to ignore the stench from the monster's carcass, and listened to the soft and haunting sobbing from Madam S.

"We did it," Avery tried to cheer her up. He used his small ghostly limb to give her a pat on the head.

"Yeah, the monster is dead," Larry, added once he had caught his breath. A new fear entered his heart. "Unless that isn't the only one."

"It is," Madam S clenched her eyes shut. Tears leaked out and fell onto the floor. "That means he isn't here."

"Who isn't here?" Avery asked.

"Their leader," she bristled. "He has already left."

"We can't be too certain," Larry lifted his weapon from the floor. "The battle is still going on."

* * *

**A/N:**

The name Fafrenir is a portmanteau of Fafnir and Fenrir. Fafnir was the dragon killed by Sigurd and Fenrir was the large wolf son of Loki.

Mario's old girlfriend is in fact, Pauline from the old Donkey Kong games. Having her as DK's old trainer was inspired by the Saturday Supercade cartoon from the 80's.


	28. Magic Stones

**Chapter 28: Magic Stones**

**

* * *

**

The battle was still going strong in the room with the caskets. Boos were battling against the harpies while the humans, and toads were fighting against the zombies on the ground. One of the Boos was struck with pure water and instantly reverted back into a human before landing on the ground that was littered with piles of rotting limbs and dead harpies.

Howls fired a rifle at the head of another zombie before he turned to them. "Where were you three?"

"Taking care of a Fafenrir," Larry explained. He was about to raise his gun to fire at the zombies, but there were only a small handful left. "It was in the room with a throne."

"What else is in there?" Howls asked.

"Nothing much," Avery said. "There where chains and it looked like someone was trying to create a model of the solar system."

"That thing that looked like a roulette wheel?" Larry asked.

Avery nodded. "Yes that was in the corner."

"Where there any stones?" Howls asked.

Larry shrugged. "I didn't get a good look. I only saw it out of the corner of my eye right before I saw that big ugly monster." He heard a shriek overhead and stared up to see a harpy coming straight for them. He shot at the beast.

The harpy crashed to the ground, but was still moving. Howls and Avery aimed their guns at it, but another fighter beat them to it.

"Seems we have succeeded," Avery pointed at last two harpies as they were being slaughtered by Boos. There were no more zombies shuffling about and the only enemy left was the one vampire woman being held against the wall by two stakes that were pierced through her clothes.

"Good," Silhouette pulled out another vial of pure water. "Anyone else ready to become flesh again?" She removed the seal. Squishy and a few others floated towards her. She splashed over her and her group.

"Larry," Kamron tapped him on the shoulder. "Where is Madam S?"

"She came in with us," Larry hadn't noticed Madam S had floated off somewhere.

"She is over there," Avery pointed to the grand coffin. Madam S had lifted the lid and looked inside it.

"Madam S," Howls hobbled up to her. "I wish you had told us where you were going."

"I needed to see how many Fafenrirs there were," Madam S said in a soft voice. "If there were none then we haven't found the right place."

"We killed one," Larry smiled. "That means the leader is here." She shook her head. "But you have just said."

"If there are two or less then it means he is no longer here," she pointed to the coffin. It was empty; there wasn't even a speck of dirt to be found inside.

"Of course he isn't here," the lone vampire woman laughed. "He knew you were coming. He left nights ago. You Mortals can never outsmart Lord Nosferus."

"Blah blah blah," Squishy rolled his eyes. "Can't you guys ever be creative or something? You always sound like you are using recycled dialogue. It's always the same with you guys." The vampire hissed. "and what is with the hissing?"

"Where is he?" Avery floated towards her. "Where did your master go?"

The minion laughed. "Do you think I will tell you?"

"You better tell us lady," Squishy clenched his metal fist.

"Or what? You will run a stake through my heart? You will kill me either way."

"We can see if we find any clues," Avery floated away from the vampire. "After we all return back to normal." He pulled out another vial of pure water.

"Kid, can you show me where you killed that hell beast?" Howls turned to Larry. "I need to see that machine."

"Sure," Larry said. It wasn't as if they were going to any more information from their prisoner. "Then we look around those other places, or try to see if this Nosferus took up reservation in a mansion, or a hotel, or a bakery or something."

The vampire laughed again. "He isn't here. He's miles ahead."

"So he isn't even in this city?" Howls smiled. "Looks like we got something from our guest."

* * *

"Its in here," Larry removed the flashlight from his belt. Now that the fight was over they could turn on their lights. He stopped several feet from the entrance. The stench struck him the face and caused moisture to leak out of the corners of his eyes. "You might want to cover up your nose."

"Ugh," Howls shuddered and pulled his shirt until it covered his the bottom half of his face.. "It certainly smells evil."

Larry kept one hand over his nostrils while holding the flashlight with the other. He could easily find the hairy corpse and the wheel; toads and humans needed the help of the light beams to navigate around.

"I had an easier time fighting it when I was a Boo," Avery held a scrap of cloth over his nose and mouth.

"There it is," Larry shone the light on the wheel. On a second look it didn't resemble a roulette wheel. It was more of an actual wheel with six spokes pointed out from the center. Each spoke had a pole and the top of each pole had a clamp. Two of the clamps were holding onto hardened pieces of amber. There was even a taller pole in the center with a larger empty clamp "Don't know what it is."

"I might," Howls lowered the beam on the floor around the wheel. There were strange white symbols drawn out. It resembled the runes and glyphs Kammy and Kamek have used. "Do you know what those rocks are?"

"Fossilized amber," Larry said. "They don't have any bugs inside."

"Nope, but it is a fossil. You know what that means."

"That it was once alive?" Larry had no idea what he was getting at.

"Rocks that contain skeletal remains or dead leaves are used to create Lazarus stones," Avery explained. "Amber is prized above others since sap is technically the blood of a tree."

"So they were trying to create more Lazarus stones," Larry shuddered. One was enough to bring on an army of the dead that plagued two towns. How many zombies could several stones bring?

"The magic is too complex," Howls continued to study the runes. "A powerful sorcerer is needed to create a Lazarus stone and the process can take days. Only the most powerful mages can create a Philosophers Stone."

"What is that?"

"A very powerful rock," Avery explained. "Like the Lazarus stone it can bring back the dead, heal a whole city of injury and disease, but it also can turn lead into gold."

"Turn lead into gold, iron into copper, tin into silver and aluminum into platinum," Howls finished.

"Can it turn anything into bronze?" Larry asked.

Howls shook his head. "Bronze is an alloy."

"Could it turn one alloy into another?" Avery asked

For once Howls appeared to be not certain. "I have no idea."

"Hey," Squishy bounced the beam of his light of the reflective surface of a mirror. "Do you think this is a prop they forgot to move?"

"A mirror?" Avery pursed his lips. "Why would they want a mirror?" He waved the beam around its frame and found even more of the markings. "Howls, did you say they used a mirror for something?"

"To communicate," Howls resumed his frown. "Nosferus is working with someone else."

"Could this someone else be in the place he had fled to?" Larry asked, and was aware how awkward it had sounded.

"That would be it," Howls nodded.

"We need to regroup and return," Avery said. "The military is probably on its way by now."

Larry nodded and turned to Kamron. The young magikoopa was staring at the runes with great intensity.

"Kamron?" Larry gave his friend a small tap on his shoulder. "You okay man?"

"I've seen this writing before." Kamron didn't turn. "In one of Kammy's books."

"Do you know what it says?"

Kamron nodded. "Just some of it. I bet if I can find a copy of the Omni Atrum Grimorie in the library I might be able to translate it."

"I'll let you do that, but we got to go now."

* * *

Luigi rode in silence, along with Daisy and Iggy in the helicopter while Mario rode on Yoshi and Peach rode with Kammy. He and Mario both had concern for Peach until they had watched her hold onto Kammy and cry out a cheer indicating that she was enjoying the ride.

"Luigi," Daisy poked him in the arm. "You have been quiet for a while."

"Oh," Luigi shrugged. "Just have a lot on my mind."

"Like?" She was holding onto her cell phone. He had no idea she was on it, nor did he know whom she was talking too.

He shrugged. It was hard for him to tell her what was on his mind, without embarrassing himself. How could he just come out and tell her that Mario and Peach had crawled off in the early morning hour to have sex.

"You're blushing," Daisy tapped him on the nose. "You don't have to tell me that. I already know what happened to Mario and Peach this morning."

"What happened?" Iggy asked. "You two said something happened to Mario and Peach. What had happened?"

Luigi felt his face heat up again. "They turned into Koopas again."

"Must have been a brief transformation," Iggy said. "They were human when I woke up."

"I still don't know how they can do it," Luigi had tried to will himself to become a Koopa again. He mentally told his cells to change, skin to form scales, teeth to become long and sharp. All it did was cause him to nearly get another headache.

"I haven't changed either," Daisy said. "Then again I haven't been trying."

"From what I have been told, it doesn't sound like Mario tried the first time either," Iggy said. "I have come across some of those Hulk comic books and it does sound like it is triggered by anger."

"Why is it happening?" Daisy asked. "You said it caused us to exchange DNA, wouldn't it have turned us into human Koopa hybrids instead?"

"That would have been the most likely result," Iggy nodded. "However Luigi is, or wasn't a natural Koopa. He was turned into one by magic."

"You said my DNA was a hundred percent Koopa," Luigi brought up.

"I did, but I also said that it wasn't natural. You were completely transformed from a human into a Koopa and that there was I guess you can call magical residue about you." He noticed the way Luigi and Daisy were staring at him. "I don't know what is exactly. You would have to ask Kammy. She knows about magic. I'm purely science."

"Didn't you used to wield a wand?" Luigi remembered when he and Mario fought against the kid in Giant Land.

"Yes, and so did the others, but we only knew how to attack zap," Iggy made another face. "I don't even think that is the correct term."

"I wonder if it is triggered by other emotions," Daisy suggested. "Like fear, or if you are in pain."

Luigi did not mention Mario and Peach's activity. That may have triggered their transformations. He thought about Wendy wearing nothing and giving him a massage. He felt a tickle in the back of the mind and tried to will himself to that feeling. He wanted to allow himself to become a Koopa again, but nothing happened.

"I may have to control my emotions," Daisy said. "There is no telling if we might get stuck as Koopas. No offense Iggy. It was kind of fun, but I like being human."

"No offense," Iggy said, but there was a bit of disappointment in his eyes. "I think you were beautiful."

"And you think I'm ugly now?" Daisy asked in a teasing tone.

"No," Iggy blushed. "I think you are pretty now. I mean you are still beautiful. You are prettier human than Peach and I think you are gorgeous in both forms."

"But you thought I was prettier as a Koopa?" She tickled his chin.

"Uh Daisy, not while I'm flying."

"Okay," she sat back.

Luigi tried not to stare at the display. Was she just flirting with Iggy? Or was she just being her usual self? She has been spending a lot of time at the mansion along with Iggy. Were they seeing each other in a whole new light?

"What was with the phone?" Luigi asked before Daisy could point out he was being too quiet again.

"I was talking with my father," Daisy stared at her phone before she put it away. "I wanted to see if he knew any more information."

"What have you found?" Luigi asked.

"Like its name suggests it is one of the biggest exports of sugar," Daisy explained. "All of their fields are used for sugarcane. They have orchards of fruit trees, cinnamon trees and maple trees."

"Sounds like Yoshi's kind of place," Luigi could see Yoshi salivating from being in such a place.

"They have raised the tax on sugar, as well as syrups, honey's, candies, cinnamon and mint herbs. My father said he had met the previous rulers before, King Sucrose and Queen Caramel."

"Mallow said the king is a fifteen year old boy," Luigi recalled the conversation he had at the ball.

"King Nougat was their son. I remember visiting the castle once. They have royal beehives and the whole air smelled so sweet. King Sucrose had hair like cotton candy and Caramel was pretty and plump lady They also visited Sarasaland a few years later While our parents attended royal functions I babysat him."

"What about Nougat?" Iggy asked.

"He was only seven when I saw him last," Daisy chewed on her lip. "He was a quiet boy. I don't think he had ever said anything when I first met him and he just stared at us the whole time. He was a little more vocal the second time though. We played several rounds of hide and go seek."

"Sounds like he was just shy," Iggy said.

"It does," Daisy agreed. "I haven't seen him since then, and I don't remember hearing how he took the throne. Father doesn't remember being informed of this bit of information either."

"We have no idea why this has motivated him to build an army," Luigi wished they had more information about the young king. He doesn't know if he was building an army because he wants to conquer the neighboring lands or if he was just paranoid.

"I have told father to call me if he comes across anything new." Daisy said.

"Do we have any idea how long till we get there?" Luigi asked.

"About seven more hours," Iggy said. "We are going to have to stop somewhere again for another night."

"Sounds good," Luigi leaned back. They can find out more from Toadsworth and he can talk with Wendy again.

-

Larry was annoyed with his stomach. Ever since they left the theater and returned to the sewers it had growled, constantly. It had gotten so loud that several others had looked at him. It was also bleeding from where the Fafrenir tagged him.

"I know how you feel kid," Howls gave his own stomach a light pat. "Don't worry we are almost there."

"I didn't feel hungry until after I turned back from being a Boo," Silhouette said. "What about you Madam S?"

"I hunger," Madam S said.

"You hear that?" Silhouette pointed at her with her thumb. "She's so hungry she can't even speak right."

"Uh oh," Squishy said. "Howls we gotta get her back."

"It isn't much farther," Howls said. "You have to hold on Madam S."

"I'm not just hungry," Madam S shook. "I need my medicine."

"Easy," Silhouette held onto her. "I know how it can be. My mother is not in the best state when she is off her meds."

"You don't want to hold onto me," Madam S looked even paler than before. Her eyes were purple, orchid in color actually and the tips of her ears were pointed. "I might hurt you."


	29. Planning

**Chapter 29: Planning**

* * *

"Madam S?" Larry stared at the pale woman.

"Let go of me," Madam S slid out of Silhouette's grasp and stumbled until she reached one of the walls. "Please do not touch me." She leaned against the slime-covered surface for support.

"What is wrong with her?" Kamron asked. "She looks sick."

A sigh came from Avery's direction. "I hate to say this, but she has become infected." His hand enclosed around the stake clipped to his belt. Howls grabbed him by the wrist and Larry stood in between the leader of the Hunters and the older woman.

"Don't you even think about it," Howls said in a low and slow tone. "Don't you ever think about it."

"I'm sorry if she is a good friend of yours," Avery never lost his calm tone.

"Don't you even dare," Howls balled up his hands into fists. "I swear that if you do then I will break your face."

"I thought you have understood," Avery stared into the older man's eyes. "She is lost to us all. She is becoming a vampire."

"Is she?" Kamron's voice shook.

"No," Squishy and Howls answered in unison.

"Look, I know how it hurts," Avery's hand never moved away from the stake. "I had to stake one of my own, because they have become infected."

"I won't let you to step near her," Larry blurted out before he had even thought about it.

"Neither will I," Silhouette added. "I didn't even see her get bit."

"Yeah," Larry nodded. Madam S was a Boo through out the entire battle. She didn't turn back until after they had left. He examined her. She was still leaning against the wall and panting. She did have the eyes and ears of a vampire, but there were no bite marks. Only a pale scar. "She hasn't even been bitten."

"You see that," Howls did not turn away from Avery. "There are no fang marks on her neck. Even if she was bitten there was not enough time for her to consume any blood."

"You were with us when we fought against the Fafenrir," Larry added.

"And she was a Boo," Hoodie brought up. "She can't be turning into a vampire. She never had gotten infected."

"Forgive me," Avery placed his stake back. "I should have never jumped the gun."

Howls pressed his finger into the other man's chest. "Don't ever allow this to happen again. Squishy, I want you to carry Madam S back to the library."

"I'll be a gentle," Squishy scooped the ill woman up into his arms.

"I…hunger," Madam S's voice warbled.

"We'll get you your medicine and then we will get you something to eat," Squishy held her to his chest. "Out of the way folks."

"You heard him," Larry said. "Out of the way." He growled, causing several people to jump back.

* * *

They made it well ahead of the others and they would have made it inside if the damn doors were not locked.

"Son of a bitch," Larry struck his fist against the surface. A long echo followed the bang. "I don't suppose you have any keys?"

"No," Squishy lowered Madam S to the ground. She would have fallen if Larry hadn't caught her. "I do know the knock." He drummed his fist against the door in several beats. After nearly a minute without a response he knocked again and was halfway through when the door opened.

"I know the password," Larry said. He was close to Howls when the old toad had uttered it. "The Password is Captain Lou."

A frail girl opened the doors. Her small round eyes widened when she saw them. "Are you the only ones to make it back?"

"We all survived," Larry, said He felt something damp against his chest and looked down to see that Madam S was licking his blood stained shirt. He stared dumbfounded at the woman and then searched Squishy for any possible answers.

"She needs her medicine," Squishy didn't even seem to notice Madam S's odd behavior. "That is why we are ahead of the others."

"Inside," the girl stepped back.

"You take her to someplace comfortable," Squishy instructed.

"This way," Larry was close to dragging the woman across the floor towards one of the small sofas. At least she had stopped licking his blood. "Squishy is getting your medicine."

"You need medicine yourself," the girl at the door said. "Unless that is the blood of the enemy."

"It's mine," Larry set Madam S on the sofa and helped her lie down and get comfortable. "I should get these looked at." He felt cold hands grab him by the wrist.

"Don't leave me," she gasped. "Stay."

"I want to stay." It was only a half lie. Earlier she had reminded him a bit of Kammy, but recently she had freaked him out.

"Stay," she brought his hand against her cheek. "Stay." Her lips brushed against his wrist.

"Not trying to be rude but-" she started to gnaw on his wrist. "Okay," he pulled away. "That is enough for now."

"I hunger," she reached for him.

"I need bandages," Larry stepped away.

Squishy ran up to them with a small glass bottle containing a strange pink liquid. "Here you go Madam S." He handed the bottle over to the frightening woman. "Don't drink it to fast."

Madam S brought the bottle to her lips and took in a slow sip. "Thank you Squishy." She took another sip.

"She's going to be better now," Squishy, said. "She didn't mean to scare you." He stared at Larry's chest and frowned. "You better do something about those puncture wounds."

"Yeah," Larry stared at his wrist. There were only a few teeth marks and they were fading away. She hadn't broken any skin.

* * *

Larry closed his eyes. The part he had been dreading was approaching. He could smell the pungent scent of the medicine before he felt the cool liquid and the burning sting. "Gah." He screamed.

"Don't be a baby," the frail girl said. She had tied her long dark hair back into a bun. "You're just lucky we have everything that you need."

"This stuff burns," Larry said through clenched teeth.

"We have to disinfect before we can sew you up." The girl finished mopping up the wounds left by the fafenrir's tail spikes.

"Do you even know what you are doing?"

"I'm a second year med student," the girl smiled. "That is why they want me to stay behind, so I can heal everyone when they get back from the hunts."

"They should be here now." Larry said.

"And if someone is hurt then the know where to find me." She held up the threaded needle. "You might want to look away."

Larry turned his head towards the direction of the door. He didn't remember anyone being too injured, nearly everyone had taken on the Boo guise and only able to become physically harmed when they were returned to their true forms.

The door opened a handful of humans and toads entered. Several had noticeable bleeding cuts, but nothing near to what Larry had.

"Don't mind them," Howls was the last to enter. "They just need a few band-aids."

"How is she?" Larry could feel the medical girl working on him.

"Madam S is still drinking her medicine." Howls lifted his sunglasses. "That Hell Beast tagged you good."

"It could have been worse," Larry smiled. "Do you have any idea how long those claws are?"

"I have seen pictures," Howls nodded. "I could say that you pretty much dodged the bullet with that monster. I have heard about people who have gotten too close to them and ended up having their intestines torn out."

Larry swallowed. He did not want to think about that. "Good thing I'm spry."

"Don't scare my patients," the medical girl gave Howls the stink eye.

"I'm sorry for that miss," Howls leaned against his cane

"I wasn't scared," He can tell the others knew he was lying. "I'm just not used to these hell beasts. I know of Blargs, Dino Rhinos, Rexes, Boos, Eeries, Thwomps, Dry Bones and Chomps, but I have never come across Fafenrir, or harpies, or vampires."

"I have never heard of these other creatures, and if I do come across them I would be certain to ask for your advice on how to kill them."

"What happened with her?" Larry asked. "Why did she get like that?"

Howls inhaled and stared at the medical girl as she finished putting in the final stitch. "I met Madam S in hospital in a town outside of Diamond City. I was tracking more vampires and gave advice on how to treat those who have been bitten. She was in one bed. They had drained so much of her blood and had a transfusion already hooked up to her."

"But you have to share blood to turn someone into a vampire," Larry said as his stitched up wounds were being dressed.

"I didn't know at the time." Howls said. "I gave the advice of cleaning her bite wound with holy water and gave it to her to drink."

"The holy water cured her?"

"Yes and no," Howls glanced at the entrance. "They have forced some blood down her throat, but it wasn't enough and they took to much. It has to be a certain amount both ways. The holy water cleansed most of the evil away."

"There is some left," Larry noted. Everything was starting to make sense. The reason for the veil, the medicine and the sleeping chamber. "She is like half vampire?"

"Some would say that, but she isn't. You have seen her at her worst. She cannot grow fangs, or turn into a bat or possess their strength."

"I don't think I want to ask what is in that medicine," Larry had a feeling that it might contain actual blood.

"I don't think anyone does. We should get something to eat ourselves."

* * *

Luigi placed another small log into the developing fire and stirred around the embers. If he were still a Koopa then all he would be able to do would be to spit out a few flames to get the fire going. He needed to put a foot down on that thought. He wasn't a Koopa. He was human and he had to think like one, at least until he was able to turn into a Koopa again. And then what would happen? There was no guarantee he was going to stay a reptile. He might change back into a human once he was tired enough. The transformation might have been slow again.

He had already talked to Wendy and it made him feel better. She had told him that one of Morton's fans had mentioned they visited Sugar Land a couple of months ago before the new orders were given and they have said they hadn't noticed anything out of the ordinary.

"What a catch," Mario called out in triumph. He was carrying several large fish behind him. "I hope everyone loves smoked fish for dinner."

"How many fish have you caught?" Luigi looked up from the flames. Mario was followed by a dripping wet Peach and Yoshi. "Peach, what happened?" He stood up.

"I fell in the river," Peach was shivering. "Yoshi and Mario pulled me out."

"You should have seen it," Mario set the fish down. "She caught the biggest fish, but the fish had thought it had caught her and tried to take her for a ride."

"I used my tongue to grab her and try to pull her back." Yoshi said. "And I pulled her back, but then we were both nearly pulled in, and Mario grabbed me and we both pulled her and the fish out of the water."

"This is the guy that gave us trouble," Mario pointed at the largest fish in the clutch. It was over three feet long, silvery blue in color and had a mouth like chain chomp. "It better be delicious."

Luigi wasn't looking at the fish. He was staring at the still shivering Peach. "Uh Mario, did you pack any extra clothes?"

"I only brought along a sweater." He turned to Peach. "You need to sit by the fire." He guided his fiancé to the flames. "I'll go get you that sweater."

Luigi shook his head. "What did you pack?

"You mean besides the sweater?" Mario pulled out the thick red wool knit sweater from his pack. "I also brought a compass, an extra pair of socks, a spare hat, a wrench, a screwdriver, a few feathers and leaves a couple of starmen, and a package of graham crackers, a bag of marshmallows, and some chocolate bars."

"I brought my coat," Peach held out her arms. "And a second gown."

"Mario bring the sweater and the socks," Luigi grabbed Peach's pack from her tent and ran over to her. She needed to change immediately. Wait a second. She couldn't change in front of everyone. "Bring them over here."

"Shouldn't she change in front of the fire?" Mario had wrapped his arms around her.

"Where everyone is watching?" Luigi asked.

"You have a point," Mario guided Peach towards her tent." I guess you put this on over your dress." He handed her the sweater and the socks."

Luigi sat back down next to the fire and the fish He needed to get them on some sticks and prep them for cooking.

"I didn't steal any of the fish," Yoshi had his head on the ground. "Even though I'm about to die from hunger."

Luigi gave his friend a pat on the head. "I don't think you will have to wait long. The fruit patrol will be back soon and they will give you some raw fruit to eat." Luigi didn't mind the idea of biting into a big piece of fruit, but he also enjoyed the appeal of cooking it first.

He looked up at the sound of crunching and saw Iggy, Daisy, and Kammy returning with their arms loaded with fruit.

"Do we have to cook all of it?" Yoshi asked. "I like the idea of sushi."

"This might not be the best kind for sushi," Luigi had finished preparing the first fish and held it and the stick over the flames. "I can't remember the last time I went on a camping trip like this, although I am certain the weather was much warmer." He had remembered to pack not only a sweater, but also a coat in case the weather did dip below freezing levels.

"So much has fallen already," Daisy set her pile of fruit down next to Luigi. "Wow, who caught that monster?"

"Peach did," Mario answered. Peach was following behind wearing a purple and less showy dress with Mario's sweater on top.

"I fell in the river," Peach sat down by the flames. "That is why I'm wearing my spare gown and Mario's sweater."

"You stay here and try to get warmed up," Daisy selected one of the fruits from the pile. "The rest of us will cook." She tossed it too Yoshi who gobbled up in a single swallow.

"I can keep going for a few more minutes," Yoshi smiled at her.

"Somebody get him a golden statue," Iggy rolled his eyes at Yoshi. "He is almost as bad as Morton."

"How much longer till we get there?" Luigi asked.

"About six more hours by the way we are traveling," Iggy glared at the fruit ka bob he had just prepared. "I wonder if there is a way where I can cook this much faster."

"You shouldn't trouble yourself," Daisy said before she threw another fruit towards Yoshi. "You have done so much."

"I know," Iggy held his kabob out over the flames. "I just want to make things easier for people who have to camp like us."

"Camping shouldn't be easy," Mario finished tying another fish to the stick and held it out over the flame. "It helps you develop skill and strength."

"There is a bigger question at hand," Kammy had used her wand to float the largest fish over the flames. "What will we do when we arrive? If no one is allowed to enter or leave, how will we get inside?"

"We can fly," Iggy said. "Well except for Yoshi."

"They also might have weapons and aircraft to take anyone who flies over down," Kammy told him. "I could try to teleport everyone inside, but then we might be attacked the second we appear."

"Then we fight back," Mario said.

"No," Peach shook her head. "That isn't the right way. We are going to ask if we can enter."

"Peach?" Luigi raised his eyebrows. "I think others might have attempted that."

"We are going to tell them they have representatives from the Mushroom Kingdom, Sarasaland, and Dark Land," Peach said. "I am certain they will want to notify King Nougat that he has two princesses and two princes to see him."

"Wait," Mario was staring at everyone. "You and Daisy are the princesses, Iggy is one prince and who is the other."

"Your brother," Peach stared at him. "He is a prince by marriage."

"I never thought of that," Luigi pulled back on his stick. The first fish was cooked.

"I agree with Peach," Daisy finished assembling her shish kabob and held it over the flames. "We are going to try diplomacy first."

"And what if that doesn't work?" Mario asked.

"Then we'll get in by force," Daisy struck her fist against her palm.


	30. Sugar Land

**Chapter 30: Sugar Land**

* * *

_Symphony City_

Larry was good at many things: he was a skilled tennis player and bowler. He was always able to defeat his siblings and father's minions when it came to one on one hoops game. He had plenty of physical strength. He even almost defeated Roy in a wrestling match once. He was a skilled marksman, at least when it came to fighting the members of the undead. One thing he wasn't good at was research. He usually left that to Iggy and Ludwig. While most of his friends engaged in the mass loads of research he decided to sit it out and brush up on his reading.

Kamron had mentioned something about a different kind of research and he had spent hours going through the old cabinets filled with index cards until he found the right number and ran towards the shelves to look up and down until he had found the right book before he sat down to read it. He called it the Omni Atrum Grimorie and the book was bound in leather with a strange symbol painted on the cover along with ancient writing.

"What were people thinking back then?" Larry stared in disgust at a picture of a female toad model. She looked like a broomstick with even thinner sticks used as arms and legs. "They thought this was beauty?" He handed the magazine over to Squishy, who also claimed he was not good at research.

"Don't ask me," Squishy winced when he saw the picture. "I was only a spore when people thought this was beauty."

"Thank you, but no thank you," Larry placed the magazine back in the rack. "I prefer women who actually look like women." He pulled out another magazine and flipped through some more of the pictures. These were even worse. The models in the old magazine were thin and almost flat, but that seemed to be their natural body type. The new images had women who looked like they had starved themselves to be that thin. "These look like the zombies we just whacked."

Squishy looked over his shoulder. "Who knows what they were on?"

"I'm guessing ipecac," Larry just stared in disgust at the picture of a Koopa woman. She was as thin as a Dry Bones. Her shoulder blades resembled wings. She had dark purple crescents under her eyes. Larry wondered if her hair had fallen out due to the lack of nutrients or if she was just naturally bald like his sister. "You know, I'm glad they kept their clothes on." He nearly threw the magazine back.

"I don't really see how you can call this research," Madam S said from behind. She still had the scent of talcum and lavender, along with the aroma of tomato sauce.

"We are still listening to the radio," Squishy tapped the small radio that was next to them. "I've been going through all the news channels and I have yet to find out any progress, or any new city with heightened zombie and vampire activity."

"What have you found?" Larry set the magazine down next to him.

"The military has finished cleaning out the false leads," Madam S said. She was holding onto a tray with two disposable and microwaveable plastic bowls filled with steaming concoctions of ground beef, tomato sauce, and macaroni noodles. "I though you would like a small snack."

"Thanks," Larry took one of the bowls and spoons.

"Where did you get this?" Squishy asked. "You wouldn't let us have any canned pasta back in New Sharpe." He took the other bowl.

"They were in storage." Madam S stood back up. It is easy for them to store and cook. I would never touch the stuff myself, but I can understand the need for them."

"What is wrong with canned pasta?" Larry blew across the surface of his bowl.

"Nothing is wrong with it. I just grew up with a mother who would never allow it in her home and who made nearly everything from scratch."

"I'm used to really big and elaborate meals," Larry remembered the last great meal he had. It was the breakfast before he and Kamron had set out for Tempo Town. "But I don't mind eating this."

"I used to live on this stuff," Squishy placed a spoonful in his mouth. "This and ramen and pizza was a college student's main source of food, that and coffee."

"I thought here was a fridge," Larry set his bowl down. "You could store the veggies and meats in it, and make a good meal."

"It is a small refrigerator," Madam S said. "It is used for milk and sandwich ingredients, and my medicine." She looked away. "Larry, I'm sorry about what had happened yesterday."

"Don't be," Larry told her. "You needed your medicine. I know you are not one of them."

"I'm almost like them," a tear rolled down her face as she climbed down the stairs.

"But she is human," Larry whispered. "I don't think vampires can use fire flowers or ghost mushrooms, or anything like that."

"They can't," Squishy took another bite from his bowl. "We keep telling she is human, but she still feels like a freak." He looked at his bionic hand. "Sometimes I feel like a freak."

"Your not."

"People can tell you this over and over, but it does not change the fact that you sometimes feel that way," Squishy clenched his metal hand. "We told you how we became involved in this mess. There are others who had loved ones and friends killed. Howls never mentioned how they also tortured him and his family before they killed his wife and daughter. Like Silhouette, his son was hiding, or else they would have killed him as well. I didn't tell you I had to stake my girlfriend?"

"No."

"I had to," he looked at the ground. "It was right before one of those four heads ate my hand, and staking her hurt a hell a lot worse. Madam S didn't tell you what they did to her husband?"

"She said they killed him," Larry said.

"Killed him, but never destroyed the corpse," Squishy shuddered. "They used the Lazarus stone to bring him back as a zombie."

Larry had a feeling where this was going. "She had to kill her husband."

"Destroy his body. She said it wasn't her husband, not his spirit, but you know it still hurt her."

Larry nodded. He didn't want to think if his father, or his brothers or sister were killed and came back as a zombie or a vampire.

* * *

_Sugar Land_

Luigi kept his eyes on the ground from where he rode with Kammy. He was concerned for both Peach and Yoshi's safety as they rode from high up in the sky. They haven't come across any soldier or member of the military as they neared the Sugar Land border but they have come across several creatures that have seamed threatening. There have been sightings of sleek cougar like wild cats, but they have kept to the trees and dared not to come near Yoshi or Peach.

The other creature was the main problem. They resembled boars with long and shaggy brown fur and curved tusks in their snouts. They were larger than the boars Luigi had remembered seeing on wild life specials or in the zoo. They were crowned with thick and wild lion like manes and had two rows of spines on their backs.

Their first appearance happened a few hours ago, when one of the ugly beasts stuck their head out from the shrubs lining the road. A half hour later one appeared in front of Yoshi. Peach was ready to swat her umbrella against the beast, but Yoshi had beaten her to it and used his tongue to bring the boar into his mouth and belly. Several more attacked after that, but it was the combined effort of Peach, Yoshi, Kammy's magic and both Mario and Luigi using fire flowers, were able to take care of those beasts.

"How are you guys holding up?" Peach shouted to Luigi when Kammy brought her broom close enough to them.

"Pretty good," Luigi said. He hated having to waste a flower on a local animal, when there may be a real fight ahead. "What about you?"

"A little tired and hungry," Peach answered.

"I can smell lots of fruit," Yoshi closed his eyes and his nostrils flared. "I can smell apples, and pears, and berries, and honey and sugar and cinnamon and peppermint and licorice."

"I can smell some of it as well," Kammy said. "We must be getting close." She was right. It wasn't long after until Luigi could smell the sugary air.

Luigi kept his eyes on the helicopter. He and Kammy were not going to come into a landing until Iggy and the others have lowered themselves to the ground.

"Time to land," Kammy said when Iggy brought the helicopter to the landing.

"Time to play politics," Luigi added as they lowered themselves to the ground.

There were several barks and growls from dogs and the squawks and honks from birds he hadn't seen or heard in years, Ostros. Several men and women dressed in dark uniforms rode up to them on Ostro like birds. Several more people came with Dobermans on leashes.

"I don't like the looks of this," Mario said.

"No kidding," Luigi had to really look up to see into the eyes of the birds. They were larger than the Ostros had had ridden before. Their heads were devoid of any covering as were their legs and their reddish brown feathers were more like fur.

The people who rode them were all dressed in the similar uniform. Black jackets with thick cuffs and slacks. Gray double-breasted vests with brass buttons. Their feet were clothed in dark boots with silver heels and they wore berets on their heads. Several of them did look like kids.

"Hands up," one of the men said. He had a few gold bars on his right chest and a few gold stripes on his cuffs. His beret sported a small red feather and he also wore a pair of silver reflective sunglasses.

Luigi didn't need to be told twice. He kept his eyes on the rifles and guns the soldiers were carrying and on the dogs. They were no longer growling and their noses were working in overtime.

"No one is allowed inside Sugar Land," The captain ordered. "Turn around and leave at once."

"I am sorry," Peach stared into his eyes. "But we are not going to leave. We request audience with King Nougat."

"King Nougat is a busy man," the captain did not flinch. Apparently there were others who had boldly approached in the recent past and tried to get by. "He will not meet with anyone."

"We are not just anyone," Mario stated and stepped forward. He did not lower his arms. "We are representatives of several different nations."

"Who do you think you are?" The captain removed his musket pointed it at Mario.

"My name is Mario Mario."

"I'm Luigi Mario," Luigi added.

"I am Princess Peach Toadstool of the Mushroom Kingdom."

"Princess Daisy of Sarasaland."

"Prince Iggy of Dark Land."

"Yoshi, and I am an ambassador from Dinosaur Land."

"Kammy Koopa."

Several of the other soldiers murmured. The captain remained undaunted. "I am sorry if you say you are who you are, but we are under strict orders to not allow anyone into the kingdom."

"And we are sorry but we are not leaving," Peach had lowered her arms. "We have come all this way to seek audience with your king. Not only are we ambassadors from four other lands, but we have been in close communication and relationships with at least a dozen others."

"Failure to meet with us will make your king appear poorly to the others," Daisy continued. "He can meet with us now or wait until the Mushroom World Conference that will happen in a few months."

"Your King's recent rulings have grabbed the attention of the neighboring lands," Iggy added. He kept his posture straight and next to perfect. "Many of the others, including our own, have grown quite concerned."

Peach nodded. "Refusing to speak with us is the same as refusing to speak with the council. I am certain that if we do leave we will notify the other nations and there will be a brief meeting."

The captain frowned. Several other soldiers were still mumbling and a few nodded. "We kept saying someone was going to notice."

"What will it be?" Daisy folded her arms and tapped the ground with her foot.

The captain coughed. "We are all still under orders to not allow anyone in, however ambassadors and members of royalty have yet to come across us. I can contact him, or his advisors." He pulled out a cell phone and dialed.

"Wow," Mario whispered and inched himself closer to Peach. "That was amazing."

"That was using diplomacy," Peach smiled proudly.

"Would it be diplomatic if I gave you a kiss?" Mario winked at her.

"Wait until we are inside." Peach winked back at him.

"Yes Major," the captain said. "I will wait." He lowered his phone. "Major Gummy will relay the information to Colonel Sours who will inform General Taffy who will then speak with one of the King's advisors. This will take a few minutes."

"How long will it take us to the castle?" Daisy asked.

"The main kingdom will take about 600 miles," the captain said. "Sugar Land is a pretty big land."

"We are going to have to find a hotel," Luigi said to Mario. "That is if they do let us in."

"Hopefully we can find one that will allow Yoshis," Mario added.

A trill sound came from the Captain. "That would be him." He pulled out his cell. "Hello Major, You are saying they can. Is it because of who they claim to be? I see. Of course I will take them there. Over and Out."

"What is it going to be?" Peach asked.

"King Nougat will want to meet with you," the captain put his phone away. "And the Major wants me to take you to the train."

* * *

The train resembled something that was more suited for a kid's amusement park than an actual train. Each cart was a bright color and reflected the waning sunlight. It looked like several hard candies were strung together.

"Tickets please," the Shyguy at the entrance said and held out his velvet-gloved hand.

"Uh-oh," Luigi turned towards the Captain. He hadn't mentioned anything about tickets.

"How much do they cost?" Daisy was already reaching into one of her pockets.

"You can only buy them at the booth," The Shyguy pointed to the long line waiting at the train station. "However this is the last train that will leave for the royal kingdom today."

"You listen to me," The captain grabbed the Shyguy by robes. "King Nougat wishes to see these folk and you know how that is a rarity these days. Now, do you want to make King Nougat angry?" He released the Shyguy.

"No," the Shyguy turned to Luigi and his friends. "Step right up. Since you are under orders of his majesty you will be riding in the royal car."

"We are not kicking anyone out are we?" Peach was the first to step aboard.

The conductor shook his head. "No one bought one of those tickets, and those are pretty expensive."

Luigi felt a twinge of guilt. "We don't want any special treatment."

"I'd seat you somewhere else, but these trains can get pretty booked up."

"That's okay," Yoshi gave Luigi a look.

"Whoa," the conductor grabbed the dinosaur by one of his spines. "Where do you think you are going? There are no pets allowed, unless they are traveling in a cage, carrier, or have a leash."

"He's with us," Mario said. "And he is an ambassador of dinosaur land."

"After all you don't want to make your king upset," Kammy glared at the conductor as she stepped aboard.

"No I don't," the Shyguy released his hold on Yoshi. "Enjoy your ride."

Iggy was the last to enter. "While protecting your borders could you keep an eye on my helicopter? I worked real hard in building it and I don't want it to be damaged by any of those boar creatures, or have someone steal it."

"We will keep an eye on it," the Captain said.

"Iggy come aboard," Daisy grabbed the Koopa genius and pulled him into the train.

The royal car was in the back of the train, just in front of the dining car. The seats were wider than the others and upholstered in velvet.

"Oh this is sweet," Mario jumped into one of the seats. "I never even gotten to travel first class on an airplane."

"You flew on my private plane," Peach reminded him.

"These do look soft," Luigi sat down next to his brother. He sank into the cushion. "I think they stuff these seats with goose down." He yawned. "Wake me when we get there." He curled up in the corner and closed his eyes.


	31. King Nougat

**Chapter 31: King Nougat**

* * *

_Symphony City_

"Military reports have stated the primary nests within the city have been eliminated," the newswoman's voice came through the radio.

Larry set down the pen he was using to circle names and dates and sat up. "Squishy, turn it up so everyone can hear."

"I'm already on it," Squishy turned up the dial to near max level.

"I am here with General Bossanova," the woman introduced her first interviewee. "General are we certain the nests have been cleared out?"

"That is correct," a gruff voice answered. "We have been to all the primary suspects. Every last walking corpse had been eliminated, every ghost vanquished and every vampire staked."

"Do you suspect there was more than one leader?"

"I think there may have been several sects or nests that were all lead by a different head vampire, but they all belonged to the same family."

"And the leader was found in city hall?"

"Bzzt wrong," someone shouted from the first floor. Everyone who was involved in the research had stopped with what they were doing and sat up to listen to the report. Books and pens were set down on the tables. Even Kamron removed his eyes from the Omni Atrum Grimoire.

"Many have assumed that," The general said. "But they were all wrong."

"All wrong?" Avery sat back in his chair and scowled. "How about we were all wrong, because you simply had no idea where they were."

"Shhh," another hunter brought her finger to her lips.

"It was actually in the grand theater house." The General answered.

"How can you be so certain?" The reporter asked.

"Two reasons. There was a grand casket that was set apart from the others, and the other reason is the dead wolf dragon."

"Wolf dragon?" Larry repeated. He knew they meant the Fafenrir.

"What is a wolf dragon?" The reporter asked.

"A large monster, covered in fur with four long necks and wolf like heads. Someone or something had cut off the heads. We also found dust and ashes in the other coffins, and there were several piles of dismembered zombie and dead harpies all around on the ground."

"Are you saying that someone beat you to the nest?"

"The correct response is that it was several someones," Avery shook his head. "And that we have worked together and did a better job than you, because unlike you we knew what we were up against."

"Amen," Howls nodded.

"We are uncertain if they have killed the leader," the general said.

"Why would you say that?" The reporter asked.

"As I have said earlier, we have found the remains of the other vampires in coffins, their dust and ashes, along with a bit of soil. We found nothing in the grand coffin, not even a little bit of soil."

"He knows more than we thought," Squishy gave the radio a light tap with his finger.

"What is your next move?" The reporter asked.

"We plan on continuing with the cleanup and then we will be speaking with President Maestro about bringing the people back inside."

Howls slammed his fist down on the table. "Why doesn't anyone ask the important question?"

"What about the vampire leader?" The reporter asked. "If he isn't dead will he have moved onto somewhere else?"

"About damn time," Howls grumbled.

"We are speaking with neighboring cities and even neighboring nations," the general said. "Nearly all responded except for Sugar Land, and those that have responded have said they haven't seen or heard anything, but will keep their eyes open."

"Thank you General, this is Claire Annette with KZMB. We will be back with you after the commercial."

"That's it?" Squishy lowered the volume once the commercials started. "We still don't know anything that we already knew."

"We do know from one of his vampire bimbos that he left a few days ago," Howls said. "If she wasn't lying then how far could she have gone?"

"Within this radius," Avery drew a large circle on the map. "Now he could have just gone into one of the other cities in Harmony Land."

"He wouldn't," Madam S spoke up. "I have faced this one before. His ego is too big for any other city, it must be the capitol for him, or nothing."

"Then that will certainly narrow it down to two places," Avery drew two smaller circles. "We just need to divide everyone up. Some will stay here of course."

"One of those places is Sugar Land?" Larry asked. He remembered a few people from that nation had tried to contact Morton through his webcam show. "I heard they were not letting anyone in or out. My brother does this Internet Show and I was a guest a few days before I left for Tempo Town." He had never thought much of it before.

"I have heard the same," Hoodie said. A few others have also confirmed it.

"If we have to, we will sneak in," Howls said. "The same way we got here."

"Thank you Mario and Luigi," Larry whispered. He noticed Kamron had opened the book again. "Find anything?" He approached his friend.

"Mostly what we already know," Kamron said. "I remembered some of the words and they matched up in here. The others were right. Nosferus was making a philosophers stone."

"Great, several armies of the undead."

"That means we have to find him as fast as we can," Howls said.

"We do have to leave soon if I'm right about some of the writings," Kamron gulped. Granted, my reading of the language is a bit rusty, but if it is true then our enemy has another idea for the stone. Its something about using it and the blood of a royal virgin to awake a demon, and it might be one of these guys." He pressed the edge of his finger against a page filled with drawings.

Larry blinked when his eyes fell on the first one. It resembled a giant slimy Jell-o mold with several tentacles waving around. The second one looked like a star fish with a large mouth filled with needle like teeth in the center. The third looked like large insect with a long snout, the fourth was a serpent with eyes all over its body and the last was a conch like creature with two vultures like heads. He didn't want to have anything to do with either of them.

"When is this awakening?" Howls asked.

"A few days from today."

"We have to move out now."

* * *

_Sugar Land_

Luigi felt something wet and a bit sticky brush against his forehead. He swatted at the feeling and rolled over onto his side. He was still sleepy. He just needed a few more minutes. He felt himself drift off again when he felt a finger poke him in his side.

"Wake up Weege," Mario poked him again. "We are here."

"We are here?" Luigi opened his eyes in time to see something long and pink lash across his face. "Ugh, Yoshi stop. I'm awake."

"I'm sorry," Yoshi slid back in his seat. "We have been trying to wake you."

"Sorry," Luigi rubbed the top of his head before he replaced his hat. "I guess I haven't been sleeping well. It has been a while since I have been on an adventure. I'm not used to sleeping on the ground."

"You can sleep again," Mario stood up. "If Peach and Daisy use their diplomacy powers again then we might be allowed to spend the night in a nice guest room." A familiar growl erupted from his stomach. "After we get some food first."

"At least you have your priorities in check," Luigi yawned again before he stood up.

Luigi wasn't sure what he was going to expect from the castle. He had only seen a few and they were starting to blend together in his mind.

"Wow," Iggy gasped when they had reached the gates. The bars looked like fruit striped candy canes and were topped with sparkling colorful bumps that resembled gumdrops. The two main gateposts were rainbow spirals and brought images of the unicorn horn shaped lollipops to Luigi's mind.

"It looks yummy," Yoshi licked the bars. "Tastes yucky." He shuddered.

"Those aren't candy," Daisy gave the dinosaur a small pat on the head.

Luigi stared through the bars. There was a path that resembled several cookies cobbled together that led to a tall and dark brown castle with white trim and brightly colored stained glass windows. The white turrets were rippled like soft serve ice cream.

"We are the ambassadors King Nougat is expecting," Peach said to the Beezo by the gate.

The Beezo flicked its glossy clear wings and opened the gates.

"I do have to admit this place is aesthetically pleasing to the eye," Iggy said as they walked through.

"It's as pretty as I remembered it." Daisy said.

Luigi had to agree. The castle and courtyard was beautiful. Flowers were grown into rings in the grass and the shrubbery had been trimmed and sculpted to lollipops and cupcakes.

"I almost feel like I'm on a life size board of that game," Mario whispered to Luigi. "The one we played when we were kids, ya know. The one where I always won."

"I remember that game," Luigi nodded. "I used to beat you at Chutes and Ladders though, and Christina used to beat us at both." He felt another twinge of pain at the memory of their cousin. "Try not to eat the castle."

"Very funny," Mario rolled his eyes.

"I do not wish to alarm anyone," Kammy spoke up. "But I am sensing a dark aura about this place."

"Yeah," Mario nodded. "It does seem very Grimm."

"Mario," Luigi covered his eyes. "That was awful."

"I couldn't resist bro," Mario smiled.

There were two more Beezos guarding the front gates. Peach curtsied before them. "Good evening. I am Princess Peach of the Mushroom Kingdom. King Nougat is expecting us."

"Someone will take you to him," one of the Beezos said after they opened the doors.

* * *

The interior tiles of the castle floor were in different shades of pastels that contrasted with the walls that were painted in a shade of brown, similar to milk chocolate. Even Luigi felt sharp hunger pains everywhere he looked. Both Mario's and Yoshi's growls have drowned his out.

"The king is in here," The Beezo guide opened the two tall doors into the throne room.

There were two men inside. The older of the two was a tall and plump man with tan skin. He wore a suit that was the same color as the outside walls with bright pastel colored buttons. His hair was similar to Gadd's, only thicker at the scalp.

The younger of the two was a teenage boy with hair the color of caramel and the texture of cotton candy. His large eyes were the color of cinnamon and he had noticeable gray shadows under them. He was dressed in a red satin shirt covered in small yellow dots and accented with a green tie. His jacket and slacks was white with red and pink stripes. His cloak was the same gold and glossy like a butterscotch wrapper. A golden crown rested on top of his head.

"Your majesty," the Beezo bowed before the two. "I have brought the guests to see you."

"Thank you," King Nougat said in a tired voice. "You are dismissed."

The Beezo bowed again before he left the room.

"Good evening," the older man greeted them. "I am Mr. Gingerbread, chief advisor of young King Nougat."

"Good evening," Peach curtsied to Mr. Gingerbread before she bowed in front of the King. "My name is Princess Peach Toadstool of the Mushroom Kingdom."

"I am Princess Daisy of Sarasaland," Daisy repeated Peach's gestures.

"Prince Ignatus of Dark Land," Iggy bowed. "But you can just call me Iggy."

"I'm Mario Mario the fiancé of Princess Peach." Mario bowed. He had to make himself seem a little more important to King Nougat than just to the Captain.

"I'm Luigi Mario," Luigi bowed. "Husband to Princess Wendy of Dark Land."

"Kammy Koopa, appointed guardian of the Dark Land Princes."

"I'm Yoshi the Yoshi. I'm the ambassador from Dinosaur Land."

"It is a pleasure to meet you all," King Nougat nodded at his guests and bowed before the princesses, Iggy and Luigi.

"I do not suppose if you remember me," Daisy said. "You were a child when we have last met."

"Princess Daisy," Nougat rubbed his chin. "I do remember you. You visited my kingdom when I was a toddler, but I remember you better from the one time my family went to visit your kingdom. Our parents went to a formal event and you babysat me."

"That was right," Daisy closed her eyes and smiled. "We made mini-forts and attacked each other."

"And I got lost playing hide and seek," Nougat smiled. "But you did find me. I apologize for being such a brat back then."

"You were not a brat," Daisy assured him. Maybe he wasn't a brat back then, but from what his people have said he had become a brat now.

"Your words are too kind," Nougat grasped Daisy's fingers and placed a kiss on the back of her hand.

Mr. Gingerbread coughed into his hand. "Sir, I am certain our guests haven't come all this way to reminisce with you."

"But of course," Nougat released her hand and stepped back. "Where are my manners?"

"We have come on the behalf of your people," Princess Peach said. "We have received messages that they are feeling oppressed."

"I'm afraid you may have been misinformed," Gingerbread said. "The people are not oppressed at all."

"Then why won't you allow anyone to leave or enter?" Mario asked.

Nougat sighed. "It is quite complicated." He placed his hands behind his back. "And I know I shouldn't keep things from my people, but this is for their own protection."

"Protection from what?" Luigi asked.

"Something dark, and something quite evil," Nougat answered. "It will take a while to explain everything and I know you have traveled for a while. Would you care to discuss this over dinner? The royal chefs have prepared several shadow boars in different glazes."

"Shadow boar?" Iggy asked. "I'm afraid I'm not familiar with that species."

"They are an aggressive kind of boar found in the forests within the kingdom and outside." Gingerbread explained.

"You mean those large ones with the manes and spikes?" Luigi wondered how they were able to take one of those things down and admired the bravery of the hunting team that had accomplished such a feat.

"Those are yummy," Yoshi licked his mouth and rubbed his stomach. "I wonder how they taste cooked."

"They are quite delicious," Mr. Gingerbread assured.

"Dinner sounds like a good idea," Peach nodded.

"We will tell the serving staff to set seven more places tonight," Nougat nodded. "Mr. Gingerbread, I need to have a small word with you."

"Finally this guy is singing my song," Mario said once the King and his advisor were out of earshot.

"I know we are hungry," Kammy said. "But do not eat or drink anything until I nod my head."

* * *

Luigi stared at the spread before them. There were several hams, larger than the ones he was used to and each had a different aroma. There were several silver covered dishes set around the hams. The plates were white and square shaped and the napkin rings reminded him of Life Savors.

"Care for some wine?" Gingerbread asked as one of the serving Beezos had removed the cork from a bottle. "We have our own vineyard as well as a apiary."

"I would assure you the flavor if I was old enough to drink it myself," Nougat smiled weakly.

"I also have to decline," Iggy said after he had received a look from Kammy.

"The wine sounds good," Daisy said.

The lids were removed from the dishes, revealing dressings made from apples and cranberries, steamed multigrain rice, mashed turnips, sweet potatoes, flaky golden rolls, asparagus spears and broccoli, both covered in a cheese sauce, and a salad

"What kind of ham would you like?" One of the Beezos addressed Luigi.

"I'm not sure," he kept his eyes on Kammy who was still staring at her wand. "What kind isn't too sweet?"

"I would go with the hickory smoked kind," The Beezo pointed at one ham. "And it tastes even better with the spiced apple dressing."

"I'll give it a try," Luigi said. Kammy nodded her head. They can eat and drink. He took a sip from his wine. There was a robust bit of berry flavor, but it wasn't too sweet. "This is good."

"We need to discuss why you are drafting children," Peach said. "And trying to keep the information from everyone."

"If Nougat can rule at the age of fourteen then boys can fight at that age," Gingerbread said.

"But why only boys?" Daisy asked.

"Mr. Gingerbread and I have had long discussions involving that," Nougat ripped one of his rolls in half. "We are not exactly forcing everyone by that age and we are not denying women to have a chance to enlist. Many older sisters have asked if they can be drafted instead of their brothers once they have received the letter and we accepted them."

"But why the need for a draft at all?" Daisy asked. "Is there a bordering country that is threatening you?"

"No," Nougat frowned. "It is something much worse."

"You said it was something dark and evil," Mario brought up. He had passed on the asparagus and accepted the broccoli.

"It is. They are the legions of the undead."

Iggy nearly spat out his juice. "The undead?" He cast a wary glance towards Kammy. "You mean like zombies."

"Zombies, vampires, evil spirits, harpies and demons," Mr. Gingerbread listed on his fingers. "I have seen some of the evidence myself."

"They killed my father," Nougat stared at his plate. "My mother too." He closed his eyes to force back the tears. "We think they are trying to take over Harmony Land."

Luigi dropped his fork. "Harmony Land?" He turned to Kammy. "Isn't that where Larry went?"

"Yes," she rubbed the top of her wand. "They are probably far away from the worst part of the invasion. Kamron would have let me know if they were in serious trouble."

"Why don't you tell your people that is why you raising an army?" Daisy asked.

"Because they will either disbelieve, or worse they will panic," Nougat took a sip of his juice. "Mr. Gingerbread told me about the great earthquake in Symphony City."

"It happened thirty years ago," Mr. Gingerbread explained. "Several buildings fell beneath the surface, lost forever, other buildings collapsed, several lives were lost in the quake, but it was the outside cities and towns and other parts of Symphony were the worst. People broke into stores, got into fistfights with others over supplies, many were trampled to death, all because they panicked."

"I want my people to be safe," Nougat said. "I want them to know the truth, but I do not want them to hurt each other out of fear."

"We also do not want information to leak out to Harmony," Mr. Gingerbread added. "We do not want those demons to know what we are planning."

"I wish I handled things better," Nougat shook. "I wish I could be more like my father. He would have known how to handle this." He continued to tremble until Daisy placed her hand on his shoulder.

Luigi stared at his plate. They were wrong about Nougat. He wasn't a tyrant, just a frightened kid with a lot of responsibility.

-


	32. Night at the Castle

**Chapter 32**: **Night in the Castle**

* * *

Dark red liquid was poured into a pewter goblet, under the critical eye of Nosferus. "That will be enough," he said when the cup was more that half way full. "We must preserve the rest of it for later."

"As you wish," the harpy said. She was their leader, their queen and the most hideous one of them all. Dirty hair hung over her dark eyes in tangled clumps like dust coated cobwebs. She held the bottle in hands that were as gnarled and knotted as twigs and the skin covering them was dry as dead leaves. When she pulled back her lips to smile she exposed crooked yellow teeth of various sizes.

Nosferus brought the goblet to his lips. His arm paused when he heard the sighs of his fledglings. "Do not feel too depressed my children. We have escaped with what he have sought to create." Three large furry heads nestled against his chest and shoulders. "Don't worry my pets, there shall be plenty of meat for you all." He brushed his fingers against one of the heads.

"Are you certain they are near?" One of the spirits asked. His form was grayish blue in color and was cloaked in shadow.

"One of my spies have informed me of this," Nosferus took another long sip from his goblet. "They are here and one of them is who we need to break the seal."

"What of the others?" The same spirit asked.

"They do not concern me."

"Should we have them disposed off?"

"No," he dismissed the idea with a wave of his hand. "Not now, we will save them for the feast, after the awakening."

"Should we spy on them?"

"If you must," Nosferus yawned. He was getting bored with the unnecessary questions. "Just be discreet about it."

"Do they know if we are even here?"

Nosferus glanced towards the Straw head that delivered the information. He did not wish to waste his voice on answering another stupid question.

"No one knows where we are," the Straw head said. "They have no idea we are here. They think we are still in Symphony."

"Let them think that," Nosferus licked the little bit of moisture that had gathered on his bottom lip.

* * *

Luigi stared at his brother as Mario, wearing nothing but his mushroom print boxers and red shirt, continued to check himself out in the large oval shaped mirror propped up in one corner of the room they were sleeping in. Mario continued to examine the insides of his nostrils and his teeth. Luigi tried to shrug that off. What he couldn't shrug off was when Mario removed his shirt and started to flex and pose.

"Mario," Luigi was seated on one of the two beds in the room and like Mario he also was wearing his boxers. He had packed his black pair covered in various Starmen. However, unlike Mario, he was wearing an undershirt. "Did you forget I was in the room?"

"Nope," Mario said before he inhaled and curled his arms.

"Why are you doing that?"

"Doing what?" Mario asked.

"Those poses," Luigi grabbed onto a pillow. "Knock it off."

"Why?" Mario asked after he had exhaled and his stomach stuck out to where it usually hung out. "Are you jealous?"

"Jealous me?" Luigi couldn't believe what was falling out of his brother's mouth. "You are correct I am jealous." He placed a hand against his forehead and sighed. "I will never get to live out my dream of being on a swimsuit edition magazine when I am flat like a pancake, while my brother has already moved onto B cup size."

"Hey," Mario glared. "Do you think you are funny?"

"No, I think I am being modest. Will you just get into bed already?"

"All right, quit yer whining," Mario yawned. "This isn't what I had expected."

"Neither have I," Luigi could not get that forlorn face of King Nougat out of his head.

"Getting the best car on the train, treated to a fine meal and given some great beds," Mario hopped onto his bed.

"What?" Luigi could not believe that was all his brother was thinking.

"We thought we would be either spending the night in either hiding or in a dungeon. That Nougat is all right. Well except for not telling his people why he needs so many fighters."

"He's scared," Luigi pulled his sheets over his lap. "He's just a kid. He has only been the king for a year. That's a lot of responsibility for someone his age. Remember what we were like when we were fifteen?"

"Yeah," Mario placed his arms behind his head. "Freshman year of high school. We both tried out for the sports teams. Me with football and you with basketball."

"We didn't even make the freshman teams," Luigi leaned back and remembered when the notice was posted and he wasn't even on it. He didn't want to talk to anyone. Their grandmother tried to cheer him with her homemade tiramisu and their Aunt Callie gave him words of encouragement.

"Then I tried out for freshman baseball and you tried out for soccer, and we made the teams."

"Yeah," Luigi nodded. "I miss them."

"What, the teams?" Mario sat up.

"Our teams, our friends and our relatives. When was the last time we went through the old warp pipe to visit them?"

"It may have been a year."

"More like a couple of years," Luigi sighed.

"I know, I know," Mario nodded. "We will find some way to visit them. Even if we are stuck in Koopa form."

"We might not have ever known them if Kamek had succeeded," Luigi wasn't sure why he was bringing up the subject he had seen in the Kammy's crystal. "There was a reason why I was kept alive when they took me and Pickles."

"Wait, who is Pickles?"

"That was what our mother named her pet stork," Luigi shrugged. "I have no idea why she had a pet stork or how she got him."

"Why were you kept alive?" Mario had pulled the covers over his legs.

"Because of the Smithy Gang and the Shroobs. Kammy had seen that. She wanted both of us alive. She showed me an alternate past of what would have happened if the Yoshi's hadn't succeeded. She would have turned us into Koopa hatchlings and raised us as her children."

Mario gave him the strangest look. "You mean we would have been Bowser's best friends?"

"Until you betrayed him and rescued Peach. I would have ended up marrying Wendy anyway."

"Odd how it really turned out," Mario stared at his hands. "We still ended up as Koopas, sort of."

"Only when we get angry," Luigi pointed at his brother. "And also horny it seems."

"Life is funny," Mario yawned. "I don't know about you, but I'm pretty tuckered out. Night Weege."

"Good night Mario."

* * *

Peach sat back in her bed. She was exhausted and was ready to get some sleep but there were two lights that kept her awake. The first was from the small lamp next to the vanity mirror where Daisy was brushing her hair. The second was from the light in the center of the room where Kammy was drawing symbols in a circle with a piece of chalk.

"Isn't anyone tired?" Peach sat up.

"I'm almost sleepy," Daisy said. "Brushing helps relax me to the point where I am sleepy enough to just crawl into bed and collapse."

"I am also tired," Kammy drew another symbol onto the floor. This one resembled an eyeball. "But I need to set up necessary precautions."

"What kind of precautions?" Peach asked.

"To make sure none of us are attacked while we sleep," Kammy sketched out one last symbol. It looked a little like a shield.

"Are you being a little paranoid?"

Kammy removed her glasses and just stared at her. "One cannot be too cautious when staying in a strange castle for the first time."

"This isn't a strange castle," Daisy set her hairbrush down. "And this isn't the first time for me."

"It is for me," Kammy drew a large triangle in the center of the circle of symbols. "I'm an old woman. There is no denying that. Old and yet beautiful, but that is not as important as what I am doing right now." She moved to one of the points and started to draw something else. She didn't even look up when there was a knock at the door.

"Mario?" Peach asked.

"I am sorry for intruding," the voice belonged to Nougat. "I cannot sleep and hope that someone will talk with me."

"I'll be happy to your highness," Daisy stood up. "I hope no one will wait up for me."

"When Kammy is done I'm going to go right to sleep," Peach said. She had no idea how long it was going to take Kammy, and had no idea if Daisy would be back before then.

"Is there anything you wish to speak about?" Daisy opened the door.

"Nothing in particular," Nougat said. "Would you like to go for a walk around the castle?"

"I would love to," Daisy said. "It has been a long time since I was here after all." She closed the door behind her.

After a few minutes after they had left, Kammy looked up. "That did seem a little unusual."

"What?" Peach blinked. "He is a young king and is going through a great deal of stress. I'm not at all surprised that he can't sleep."

"Why did he come here?" Kammy asked. "Why didn't he speak with Mr. Gingerbread, or one of his other advisors?"

"Maybe they were already asleep?"

"Why didn't he want to speak with the brothers, or Iggy? He wanted to speak with one of us and I feel he wanted to speak with Daisy."

"He is a fifteen year old boy," Peach wanted to laugh. "And I think he may have a crush on Daisy."

"Hmmm," Kammy tapped the bottom of her chin. "You may be right." She moved on to another point.

"What do all these mean?" Peach pointed at the circle of symbols.

"The ones creating the circle are all protection symbols," Kammy explained. "The triangle indicates how many rooms I want to be protected." She pointed at the first triangle symbol point. "That is for Iggy and Yoshi. The symbol represents reptiles." The image resembled a turtle and a lizard. "The one I am working on represents women and I am drawing three of them." The symbols were of the familiar cross and circle. "And the last symbol represents twins."

"I hope you will finish soon," Peach slipped under the covers, but did not rest her head on the pillow. She was still overcome with a bit of curiosity.

"Just have to draw the last symbol, add a few drops of pure water and say the spell." She sat down at the third point.

"Were you trying to protect us earlier, when you wanted us to wait to eat?" Peach hadn't figured out what that witch was doing.

"Yes, I was doing a test to see if the food was poisonous."

"Your suspicions were wrong. King Nougat is just a troubled young man and he turns out to be very pilot and sweet. I have no idea about you, but I am going to send some of my soldiers to help him."

"You will be discreet?"

"It is what he wants."

"There," Kammy put the chalk away and pulled out a vial. "Three drops for three rooms." She allowed three clear drops to fall into the center of the triangle before she sat down and pressed her fingers together. Peach had no idea what she was saying, but something had worked. A ring of light like a water ripple radiated out from where Kammy sat shot out over the floor, up the walls, across the ceiling until it shrank again into a tiny dot.

"That was it?" Peach asked.

"That is it," Kammy waved her wand and the glowing sphere vanished.

* * *

"I appreciate you taking me on a small tour," Daisy said. She fought to keep herself from yawning. She did not want Nougat to think she was bored. She did feel a twinge of guilt. She could easily fall asleep but the poor king couldn't.

"I don't know how much of the castle layout you remember," Nougat said. "I know it would be better to wait to give you a tour in the morning."

"My friends would be awake and we would love to take together," Daisy smiled. She remembered the fountains that were in the back of the castle, amongst the gardens, and the bee hives.

"Will you step out to the balcony with me?" Nougat pointed to the glass panel doors. The star filled sky and moon was on the other side. "Maybe the fresh air will help ease my mind."

"I would love to," Daisy stepped out. The air was still as sweet as she had remembered it last. She could smell the honey from the numerous hives, the melody of mints from the herb garden and several different flowers. "It smells as sweet as it did the last time I was here." She remembered how she stood on the balcony and was tempted to touch one of the icicles like trimmings that hung from the bottom. She dared to climb over the side and would have succeeded if Sucrose hadn't grabbed her. She felt a tear travel down her cheek and more gathering at the corners of her eyes and threaten to fall.

"Is there something wrong?" Nougat held out a handkerchief.

"I'm sorry," Daisy accepted his offer. "I can't imagine how this is weighing down on you."

"You do not have to apologize," the young king smiled. "This is my burden."

"It doesn't have to be your burden alone," Daisy grabbed onto his hands. "We can help you. I can ask my father to send some soldiers to help you out."

"But they will know."

"My people will know, they will not tell everyone, but I think you should be honest with your people."

He shook his head. "I don't want them to panic and cause riots."

"You won't know that for certain. You want your people to trust in you. You will have to trust in your people."

"We should talk about this in the morning," Nougat let go of her hands. "With your friends and my advisors. It won't be a grand council, but it will be a mini council." Daisy nodded. That did sound like a good idea. "Daisy, I hope you don't mind, but I am a bit curious. Your friend Luigi was introduced as the husband of Princess Wendy. May I ask why she didn't come?"

"She is expecting," Daisy was a little curious why he was asking now, but he may want to be discreet and not seem rude in front of the others.

"It isn't safe for her to travel." He seemed to be a bit confused. "Her brother is Iggy. Is she also a Koopa?"

"Yes, it is a bit complicated."

"I hope the vampire problem doesn't delay the wedding of his younger brother and Princess Peach," Nougat placed his hands on the railing. "That is if he does want to assist in the fight."

"Mario is the older brother," Daisy said. "I don't think were would be a delay, and even if there was they wouldn't hate you for it."

"You are so sweet Daisy and I am probably keeping you awake," Nougat yawned and stretched. "I should get some sleep myself."

"Good night your majesty," Daisy gave him a curtsey.

* * *

Nosferus wiped his fingers across the cool surface of the mirror, washing away the image of whom he was speaking with and returning it to the reflection of the room, and the zombies and harpies.

"What have you discovered?" He turned around to face the frazzled ghost.

"That old Koopa witch has set up blocks," the spirit said. "I could not spy on any of them. They know we are here."

"You are wrong," Nosferus stood up. "They have no idea where we are. The witch is paranoid. She had thought the royal cooks would have slipped in a few extra ingredients into their food." He rubbed his thumb and middle finger together. "Trust me. They have no idea we are here, and they have no idea what is coming."


	33. Ghostly Encounter

**Chapter 33**: **Ghostly Encounter**

* * *

Luigi sat up and turned on the small mushroom shaped light on the nightstand. The soft purple glow provided him with enough light to see around his room. He had already known it wasn't too big, and unlike his usual guest room at Peach's palace, there was no adjacent bathroom.

"Bowser," Mario mumbled from his bed. He was lying with his back towards Luigi, and by the snores Luigi could tell he was still asleep. "Whats-a wrong?" Another series of snores followed. "Bastardo lordo di una tartaruga del mutante."

"Mario," Luigi shook his head. His brother would never use that word, not in English or Italian, not while awake anyway. He had heard his brother talk in his sleep, both in English and Italian, but he had never cursed.

"Too proud to admit I'm the better Koopa?" Mario mumbled again before he snored.

Luigi rolled his eyes. Even in his sleep Mario has an ego, and now that has a new ability he thinks he is a more powerful reptile than Bowser.

"Stroke my tail, Peach."

"That's it," Luigi rolled out of bed. He was going to the bathroom before Mario could mumble anything else.

* * *

Luigi stared at his reflection while he washed his hands. His brown hair pointed in every direction. It was going to take a bit of a while for him to brush it back into place. That was one thing that had always remained the same whenever he was a human or a Koopa. He tapped his finger against his nose, even when fused with his jaw into a snout the part with the nostrils was large and round. It was the same for Mario. He smiled. His flat teeth looked so puny compared to his sharp Koopa fangs.

"Pull your self together," Luigi closed his eyes. He was born a human; he grew up as a human. He spent nearly thirty years of his life as a human. When he first became a Koopa all he wanted to do was become human again. Why does he feel like he would rather be a Koopa than a human?

He felt a small chill, not from the idea of being a reptile, but an actual drop in the temperature. It felt like it was growing colder by the second and his teeth were chattering. He breathed out and sure enough there was a small cloud. A sudden drop in temperature within doors usually meant only one thing.

"Mario," he called out and ran back into the warmer hall and to the guestroom he shared with his brother. He ignored the cramps he felt across his body and the prickling of his skin. "Mario."

Mario was growling in his sleep and he was thrashing his claws. His claws? Great, his brother had somehow managed to turn into a Koopa while he slept.

"Mario wake up," Luigi smacked his brother with a pillow.

"Guh?" Mario snorted. "Weege?" He blinked his eyes. "What's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"I haven't," Luigi still felt the adrenaline from the fear. He also felt the clawing sensation from before, only this time it was stronger. "I felt one's presence. It was in the bathroom, Mario." His skin itched and burned all over. "This place is haunted." He closed his eyes when pain consumed his entire body. He heard the bones snap and reshape and his clothes tearing.

"Luigi," Mario pointed at him. "You're a Koopa again."

"So are you," Luigi couldn't believe how oblivious his brother was. "You changed in your sleep." He ran his tongue over his teeth. It felt a bit welcoming to feel their sharpness.

"Strange," Mario rubbed his snout with his fingers. "I had no idea I could change in my sleep."

"Were you angry in your dreams? You were talking in your sleep and it sounds like you were attacking Bowser. You were even swearing in Italian."

"Wow," Mario looked over his shoulder and saw his shell. "It seems three things trigger this, anger, arousal, and fear. Speaking of which, why are you so scared?"

"Because a ghost was about to show up in the bathroom." Luigi wagged the end of his tail.

"Yeah, but you shouldn't be afraid of ghosts. You're on a friendly level with those portrait ghosts and you fought against King Boo."

"I knew what I was up against," Luigi sat down at the edge of his bed. "This is something new, and I had my poltergust on me at the time. Mario, there is something haunting the castle."

"We haven't come across the ghost before," Mario yawned. "Nougat and Gingerbread hadn't mentioned them either."

"Yeah," Luigi felt another shiver travel under his shell.

"Right," Mario flopped back down.

"What are we going to do?"

"I dunno about you, but I am going to sleep."

"Mario," Luigi grabbed another pillow. "There is a ghost haunting this castle."

"And for all we know it could be the house ghost. We'll ask Nougat in the morning. We can't really do anything about it now. Everyone is asleep and I don't know about you but I don't want to confuse that kid. We relax ourselves and sleep and maybe we will change back by the morning."

Luigi wasn't sure if he wanted to change back. He finally was able to become a Koopa again, but then again he also didn't want to freak out Nougat. He set down and the pillow and pressed his head against it. Mario was right. They both needed to get some sleep, and they would discuss the ghost in the morning.

* * *

Mario did not mention the ghost in the morning. His eyes were instantly drawn to the breakfast display. There was so much fruit. Cantaloupes had been carved out and the edges have been sculpted in a decorative manner to create beautiful bowls that held various fruit slices. There were cinnamon rolls, and coffee cakes set up, and even fresh baked glazed donuts. Waffles were stacked up high on the various plates and surrounded by containers of maple syrup, honey, and bowls of berries.

"Mario," Luigi poked his brother. He almost wished he were still a Koopa. A sharp Koopa claw might have gotten a reaction. His brother was right, once they went to sleep they changed back into humans.

"Look at the variety for the waffles," Iggy sat down next to Daisy. "It's just like home, except we never had fresh berries for it."

"Never?" Daisy raised her eyebrows.

"Just the kind that comes in a can, or jelly," Iggy was also impressed by the display of food. "Kammy, we need to ask the kitchen staff to set out fresh berries once in a while."

"I will take note of it," Kammy said. She waited several minutes before she sat down.

"Everything is fresh," Mr. Gingerbread said as several more Beezos flew around and brought out more silver trays. "The syrup was bottled within the past few days, the same for the honey and the berries were picked yesterday."

"Everything looks delicious," Peach sat back while a Beezo poured juice into her glass.

"Yeah," Mario licked his lips. "I smell beef."

"Mario," Luigi hissed. How much longer was his brother going to ignore the ghost?

"It is a steak," Yoshi's eyes grew wider. "And hash browns. So much yummy stuff for breakfast."

"Please don't wait on me," Nougat said. "I am not going to say grace, or have any special ritual."

"Mario," Luigi tapped his brother's toe with his foot.

"What?" Mario speared one of the steaks with his fork and brought it to his plate.

"The ghost," Luigi whispered. "We want to talk about the ghost."

"There was a ghost?" Kammy looked up from her plate and cast a "See-I-Told-You-So" Glance at the princesses who both merely shrugged.

"There was a ghost in the restroom last night," Luigi explained. "In the hall with the guestrooms."

"A ghost?" Nougat stared at him in alarm.

"Do not jump to conclusions," Gingerbread said before he turned to Luigi. "Do you know what this ghost looked like?"

"No," Luigi shook his head. "I left before it could present it self, but I felt it's presence. It became freezing cold within only a few seconds."

"Hmm," Iggy set down the bowl of fresh cut strawberries. "Ghosts don't automatically lower the temperature unless they are upset."

"It was an upset ghost," Luigi clenched his silverware. "I ran because I was scared, and I never got to see it."

"We weren't certain if you have a usual ghost around or not," Mario heaped on the waffles.

"Make sure you get plenty of fruit, Mario." Peach said.

"We don't have any ghosts," Nougat turned to Gingerbread. "You don't suppose they have already started to come here?"

"It is too early to say," Gingerbread pressed his hands together. "None of the soldiers or even members of the royal guard have seen or sensed anything. They would have reported something."

"But there have been spirits linked with the vampires," Nougat protested. "We need to raise the defense." He struck his fist against his open palm.

Gingerbread sighed. "I will have the Beezo guards search around the castle."

"Thank you," Nougat sighed deeply.

"Mr. Gingerbread," Daisy had set a few melon slices onto her plate. "I have offered the services of Sarasaland to aid you against this new terror."

"I can also offer my soldiers," Peach added.

"Thank you," Nougat almost looked like he was about to cry.

"Do you think this is wise?" Gingerbread had yet to lower his hands.

"We want to help," Daisy said. "We may not know how big this threat is, but I know that with our forces combined we will be able to defeat them."

"Is it a bit rash to be offering such services?" Gingerbread raised an eyebrow. "Do you have an army at hand?"

"We both have soldiers who choose to enlist," Peach said. "Both our fathers are suspicious of this land. We have told them that there is no threat from Sugar Land."

"Have these soldiers already been ordered to come here?"

"Not yet," Daisy answered and stared at Peach.

"We will ask our fathers after breakfast."

"I do not think this is wise."

"Why not?" Mario asked after he had swallowed a bite of steak. "You seem to be against the idea of getting help."

"Young man you are clearly not a military man, are you?" Gingerbread never lost his calm and forward tone. "There is certain protocol to be had. Before asking for outside nations for assistance we have to speak with the council men and senators of Sugar Land, now that we know you are willing to assist we can form a meeting."

"Why wait?" Luigi asked. "This threat isn't waiting, especially if they have already made their move on the castle."

"Luigi," Daisy raised her hand. "This is how we do things."

The sting had struck him. It wasn't the way she had raised her hand. It was the way she said we, indicating those of royalty. He hadn't been raised as a prince. He was one only by marriage and he had never been schooled in politics. He was a plumber not a diplomat.

"We do understand your concerns," Gingerbread said. "The council will meet in the afternoon, until then how about a tour of the castle grounds."

"After breakfast?" Yoshi said through a mouthful of fruits and cinnamon rolls.

"Of course," Nougat smiled at him. "After we have eaten."

* * *

The tour lasted longer than Luigi had hoped. They were divided into two groups with Nougat leading one and Gingerbread leading the other. While one group was exploring the outside and the gardens the other would be inside. On one hand they were burning all the calories they had consumed earlier.

"I know that the next area will not be unfamiliar to you," Gingerbread said as the two Beezo guards pulled open the doors. "The dungeon."

"Oh great we are being thrown into the dungeon," Iggy rolled his eyes. "It has been a trap. Everything was set up. We should-" Kammy grabbed one of his horns, silencing him. "What?"

"There is no need for you to be comedian," Kammy released her hold on him.

Gingerbread cleared his throat. "If you will allow me to continue?"

"Go ahead," Luigi cast an annoyed glance at Iggy. What was wrong with him? Ever since they were divided up he was grumbling, being sarcastic and annoying the others on the tour.

"The dungeon has been through a few modifications," He lead them down the gray stone stairs. "We try to keep it clean, it can become quite damp down here, even when it hasn't rained, and you don't want to know what is like in the summer."

"Boy I can imagine," Peach said as she examined the bars. "No sign of rust."

The bars did look new and the whole area did not smell like a dungeon at all. There was no musty aroma, no scent of mildew. The walls look clean.

"Ugh," Iggy grabbed his nose. "I think they overdid it on the disinfectant."

"I agree," Gingerbread wrinkled his nose. "Maintenance must have been down here earlier today. They must have known we were going to give you a tour."

"The paint also seems fresh," Kammy approached the nearest wall and sniffed. "Only a few days old at most."

"It was given a repaint a few days ago," Gingerbread.

Luigi wondered if there was a specific name for the paint. It seemed most dungeons were the same shade of gray. He had never thought it was paint. He stared at the clean walls until he had noticed a section near the back. It was a perfect rectangle in a darker shade than the rest of the walls.

"What about that?" Luigi pointed at the area.

"Yeah," Iggy studied the space. "It looks like someone missed a spot."

"I'm surprised they haven't finished it," Gingerbread frowned. "We had two painters stop because they suddenly felt ill. We had thought it was from the paint fumes."

"Hmm," Kammy approached the wall.

"Is she suspicious about a bad paint job?" Peach whispered.

"I have no idea," Luigi said. Kammy had appeared to be quite paranoid the past few days. She suspected the food might have been poisoned or drugged, and Peach had mentioned the witch had created a protection spell for all of their rooms. After what had happened with the ghost he was thankful.

Kammy held her wand in front of the wall. Glowing green sparks had flashed inside the crystal like bulb. She placed a hand on the unpainted area. Seconds later she had fainted.

"Kammy," Iggy was the first by her side. "Kammy wake up."

"Medics," Gingerbread had shouted towards the Beezos. "We need to get this woman to the doctor."

"Kammy," Luigi removed his hat and fanned her with it.

"Make sure her tongue isn't blocking her air way," Peach said. "It was in first aid training."

"I'm on it," Gingerbread carefully opened Kammy's mouth. He watched her chest rise up and down.

"Stand back," several Beezos dressed in blue robes flew towards them. They were carrying a stretcher. "We need to take her to the medical wing." The Beezos set the stretcher down next to the Magikoopa. "On three. One, two, three." The picked her up and placed her on the stretcher.

"Why would she just faint?" Iggy stared at the wall. "She didn't look like she was feeling ill."

"No, she didn't." Luigi placed one hand against the unpainted area. It felt cool, almost cold, but nothing seemed off, but then again he wasn't a magikoopa. "There is something about this spot."

"I agree," Gingerbread glared at it. "We will have it examined after the council. Until then I want the dungeon closed off to everyone."

* * *

A/N 

Translation for what Mario said in his sleep.

"You gross bastard of a mutant turtle."


	34. Waiting in the Wing

**Chapter 34: Waiting in the Wing**

* * *

The worst part was the waiting, and it wasn't just waiting to see if Kammy would awaken soon, but the waiting for what the doctors are going to say. Luigi kept walking across the floor, not staring at anyone, just the opposite walls as he walked. It was what he did when was at the hospital. He had done it whenever his grandmother had to go to the hospital. He had paced whenever one of his cousins was about to welcome a new baby into their life. He paced in the Mushroom Kingdom hospitals whenever Mario was injured from fighting against Bowser, and if he hadn't gone out to get the Crabbie grass to save his brother from becoming a bean, he would have paced around in the room.

Mario was seated in one of the chairs, staring at his shoes. His gloves were folded and placed on his lap. That was what he did in waiting rooms. He would constantly remove and put on his gloves. Yoshi was seated next to him. He kept a hand on Mario's shoulders. Peach was at the desk, talking with one of the nurses. Luigi couldn't hear what they were exactly saying due to the low volume of their voices. Daisy and Nougat were handing out small paper cups filled with cool water to everyone. Iggy was frozen. He was just staring out into space.

"Here you are," Nougat held out the cup of water in front of Iggy, despite the lack of reaction from the young koopaling. "You should drink something." Iggy didn't stir or say anything.

"Iggy please," Daisy said in a soothing tone. "I know you are close to Kammy, but you can't sit there like that all day."

"Thank you," Iggy croaked. He took the cup from Nougat and took a sip.

"Does anyone remember what had actually happened?" Daisy asked. "I have only been told she had fainted."

"We were being shown the dungeon," Luigi paused in his pacing. "They had renovations a few days ago, but there was one space on the back wall that hadn't been painted. She put her hand on it and a few seconds later she had fainted."

"There has always seems to be trouble with that one spot," Nougat frowned. "Workers get ill when they paint it. One of the guards had said he had been plagued by nightmares a few days after he had touched it. Mr. Gingerbread has told me that I shouldn't be too worried about it, but now I want a full investigation."

"Gingerbread said he wanted that area investigated," Luigi said. "He had ordered some of the Beezos to keep everyone out of the dungeon while it was being looked at."

"Hmm," Mario pursed his lips together, but didn't say anything.

Yoshi stared him and sat back. "I didn't like the way it smelled."

"Did it smell bad?" Daisy asked. Luigi remembered how Iggy was bothered by the scent of the disinfectant while they were in the dungeon.

"No," Yoshi shook his head. "When we were there I noticed there was no scent at all. I even had my nose up against the surface and breathed in deeply. There was no scent. It was odd and Mario said it felt cold."

"Cold?" Luigi turned to his brother.

"They usually are cold," Daisy said.

"This isn't that kind of cold," Luigi told her. "You don't just feel it on the palm of your hand. You feel this kind of cold coursing through your entire body, all the way to your bones, and that cold just lingers, even after you touch it."

"That was exactly how it felt," Mario slipped his gloves back onto his hands.

"I have an evil space on the wall in my dungeon," Nougat looked ill. "It's those monsters. They are going to strike within. Princesses, please ask your kingdoms for their help. I have to order all the soldiers to prepare to be at the castle."

"Your highness," Mr. Gingerbread called from the entrance. "You are jumping to conclusions."

"I don't think he is really jumping," Luigi stared into the chocolate brown eyes of the advisor. "You both are aware of the threat that is heading towards this kingdom and who knows how many other lands it will plague. I felt the presence of a ghost last night. You have an odd space on the wall that caused several painters to become ill and sent one of our friends into a coma. He is trying to do what is best for his kingdom."

"He is also just a boy who is still new at being a regent," Gingerbread's voice grew colder. "Do you think the same thought had not crossed my mind? That is why I have several Beezos dispatched to guard the dungeon. I have had word sent out to the soldiers to be prepared. Before we can officially do anything we have to meet with the council in the war room. Your highness, will you please come with me?"

"Yes sir," Nougat nodded and turned to Daisy. "We may send word for both you and Princess Peach to join us." He held onto her hands. "Hopefully this will not be long." He ignored Iggy's growl.

"I know," Daisy released her hold on his hands.

"Actually we require the presence of both Princesses," Gingerbread said. "Prince Iggy as well if he wishes to send some of Dark Land's forces our way."

"I don't think I will be much help," Iggy had stopped glaring at Nougat. "I could ask my father, but I doubt he would do anything."

The advisor nodded. "This way."

"Don't worry," Daisy brushed her fingers through Iggy's hair. "I have a feeling Kammy will pull through this." She kissed the top of his snout before she followed Nougat and Gingerbread.

"Thank you," Peach smiled at the nurse and followed after Daisy.

"The doctor still hasn't come out," Mario said a few minutes later. "How long has he been in there anyway?"

"Thirty two minutes," Yoshi said. "I've been watching the clock. It has been thirty-two, no make that thirty-three minutes since the doctor went into her room.

"I hate feeling useless," Luigi sat down next to Iggy. "I wish I knew what to say."

"You don't have to say anything," Iggy's face was still pink from the kiss. "Just knowing that you both care is good enough."

"Can I ask you something?" Luigi stared into Iggy's eyes. "What was that growling a few minutes ago?"

"I was growling at Gingerbread," Iggy explained. "The guy was being a jerk."

"No you weren't," Luigi shook his head. "You were growling at Nougat. You were growling because he was holding Daisy's hands." Iggy just stared at him. "You like her. You have a crush on her."

"So," Iggy swallowed. "So what if I am?"

"Nothing really," Luigi placed his hands behind his head. "I think the two of you are cute together."

"What?" Mario looked at the two of them. "Daisy and Iggy are dating?"

"No," Iggy's entire face turned pink again. "We haven't actually started to date or anything. We spent time together, but I haven't asked her out for cheeseburgers or to a movie or anything."

"Would you?" Luigi asked. "I mean after Kammy wakes up and after we help King Nougat out?"

"Sure," Iggy shrugged. "I mean I guess. I have no idea what to s-" the door to Kammy's room opened and cut him off.

"Doctor?" Luigi looked up at the doctor. He was a tall man with dark hair cropped short and a nose almost as large as Waluigi's. He was staring at the clipboard in his hand. "How is she?"

"Hard to tell," the doctor said. "I examined her, did several tests. She is very healthy for her age. She shouldn't have even collapsed. I will set up a cat scan for her for this afternoon."

"Is she going to wake up soon?" Yoshi asked.

The doctor sighed. "We are uncertain at this point. After the scan we may know what exactly is wrong with her. She may have had a stroke."

"No," Iggy stood up. "She can't. She is too strong for that."

"I'm sorry son," the doctor placed his hand on Iggy's shoulder. "I know you think of her as strong and immune considering she is a magikoopa, but she isn't immune to such medical problems. Magic cannot stop a stroke, or even a heart attack. It may prevent it, if they think of protection, but once it happens it cannot be stopped."

"You have to wake her," Iggy grabbed onto his collar. "Not shake her shoulder alarm clock wake her. You have to wake her up medically."

"Iggy," Luigi grabbed onto his arm. "That is what they are trying to do."

"We will let you know if there are any improvements," The doctor said. "But right now visiting hours have ended. In fact it has ended minutes ago." He glanced at his watch. "Maybe you should try and get some lunch."

"We can't leave," Iggy gasped. "Not now."

"I'm sorry son, but you have to."

"Not yet," Iggy shook his head.

"Iggy, we have to go," Luigi grabbed onto his shoulders. "We can visit again in a few hours, after the scan."

"No," Iggy closed his eyes.

"We can search around the castle," Luigi whispered into Iggy's ear. "We can help everyone by looking for ghosts." The idea of searching around for spirits did not exactly appeal to him, but he had to get Iggy's mind of Kammy for a bit.

"We'll search and then come back?" Iggy asked in a hopeful tone.

"Yes," Luigi nodded. They would search right after lunch. Knowing his brother and Yoshi, they would insist on having something to eat before they did any sort of investigating.

* * *

To Luigi's surprise Mario had said he wasn't that hungry and they agreed to have something simple along the lines of soups and sandwiches. Yoshi himself only had two bowls of soup and four sandwiches before they split into two groups and would communicate through their cell phones.

"We have to be extremely careful," Iggy said. He was partnered with Luigi and they decided to take the western half of the castle. "We don't want to rouse any suspicion of any of the guards."

"We have the perfect cover if they do ask us what we are doing," Luigi and Mario had figured out the cover themselves. "We would just tell them that we are lost. We would ask directions on how to get back to our rooms, or we will ask if they have something like a tennis court or a library."

"Why exactly would we be looking for those?" Iggy had lowered his voice to a whisper.

"To help get our minds off Kammy," Luigi whispered back.

"That would make sense," Iggy pulled something from his pocket that resembled a gameboy horror. "I'm going to use this to help look for any possible spectre energy."

"I had a feeling this castle was haunted," Luigi shuddered. "I have a feeling Mario doesn't like Mr. Gingerbread. I'm not fond of him either."

"He is my number one suspect." Iggy kept his eyes on the horror. "It almost seems like he trying to take his sweet time to launch an attack on the dark forces. He did dismiss your claim to the ghost this morning, and he knew there was something suspicious about that one area on the dungeon wall, but he didn't try to do anything until now."

"Are you saying he is trying to rule the land though Nougat?" Luigi clenched his fists. The man was taking advantage of Nougat's fear and naiveté. "That figlio di una cane femmina."

"I'm pretty certain you just said something that you wouldn't normally say around children."

Luigi nodded. "Have you found anything?"

"Yeah," Iggy pointed to the two rooms. "There is something up there, but the energy is biological."

"Right up ahead?" Luigi tried to make his whisper even quieter than before.

Iggy nodded and approached the door on the left. He closed his eyes and sniffed. "Toads?"

The door opened by a crack and a pair of hands, one was made of metal, reach out and grab Iggy by the shoulders. The metal hand clamped down his snout.

"Iggy," Luigi gasped and ran after him. Something long and dark darted under his feet and tripped him. He had barely hit the carpet before he was grabbed from behind and pulled into the darkened room.

"Wait," a voice Luigi hadn't heard in a long time said. "Let him go."

"Okay," a girl said before she released her hold on him.

"What is going on?" Luigi pulled out a flashlight and shone it on one of his captors. It was the girl. She was around Nougat's age and had long dark hair.

"Get that out of my face," her pupil's thinned into slits and she covered up her face with her hands. "That was right in my eyes." She had a pair of upper and lower fangs.

"Luigi?" Larry Koopa was another of the captors.

"Larry?" Luigi moved the beam onto the young Koopa. He was dressed in the same outfit Luigi had seen him last, except there were holes punctured into his shirt. He also had a large and strange gun strapped to his back, vials of water in a bandolier across his chest and several knives and what looked like a wooden stake on his belt. "What are you doing here?"

"Tracking down something you could not possibly understand," the third figure in the room said. He was an old toad with long gray hair and an unkempt beard. "Now turn off that light."

"No," Luigi turned back to Larry. "Someone on the other side of the hall got Iggy."

"Iggy is here?" Larry blinked.

"Yeah, and so is Mario, Yoshi, Peach, Daisy and Kammy. Kammy is in a coma."

"Kammy, but how?"

"We were on a tour of the castle and there was this wall in the dungeon. There was a section that wasn't painted and Kammy examined it with her wand and she put her hand on the space."

"How big was this space?" The old toad asked.

"It was the size of a doorway," Luigi turned to him, but he did not shine the light on him. "Why?"

"Doorway," The old toad rubbed his beard. "I knew it. I knew those bastards had a pocket set up."

"What are you talking about?" Luigi had no idea what the hell was going on, or who these other people were, not to mention how they got in the castle.

"A pocket dimension," The girl tried to explain. "They aren't too big, about the size of a stadium. Howls thinks that there is a pocket dimension connecting the castle to the theater house in Symphony City."

"What is going on?"

"I heard there were zombies in Harmony Land and Kamron and I went to fight them," Larry explained. "We met up with Silhouette and then Howls and his friends and we found out it is connected with a group of vampires-"

"And the vampires are coming here," Luigi finished. "King Nougat has been preparing for a battle against them, but he had thought they were still in Harmony Land."

"The leader and his hell beasts moved on here," the girl said.

Luigi grabbed onto his head. "Okay. More of your friends are in the other room?"

"Yeah," Larry nodded. "Where is Kammy?"

"She's in the medical wing, but they won't let us in."

"Kamron can make us invisible for a bit." The girl explained.

"Maybe Kamron can wake her," Larry said. "We got to get there now."

"You and Kamron will go see your friend," the old toad, Howls instructed. "We will stay hidden here."

"Okay," Luigi grabbed onto Larry's hand. "Remember that you and Kamron have to stay hidden in this spell."

"No problem," Larry nodded. "Can I ask you one thing? When did you turn back into a human?"

"Long story," Luigi shook his head. "Your brother can explain."

* * *

They had contacted Mario and Yoshi and asked to meet with them outside the medical wing. Iggy hadn't explained anything to Mario. He just told him they were going to meet at the wing as soon as possible.

Kamron turned out to be a young magikoopa dressed in orangish red robes and had a matching curl of hair poke out from under his hat and a splash of freckles on each cheek. That was what Luigi saw of the kid until he and Larry had vanished.

"What is going on?" Mario had beaten them to the wing.

"Larry is here," Iggy explained. "And he brought his vampire hunting buddies with him."

"Where is he?" Yoshi asked.

The door to the medical wing opened, no one stepped out.

"Right there," Iggy pointed at the open door before it closed. "He and Kamron has some sort of cloaking ability over them."

"Whoa," Mario rubbed his forehead. "When did they get here?"

"Kamron told me about an hour ago," Iggy smiled. "And you two should be proud. He said that it was Larry's idea and he got the idea from you guys. They came up through the pipes."

"Huh," Mario smiled. "Who would have thought we would have been a positive influence on the Koopalings?"

"Not our father," Iggy shook his head. "I don't know about you Luigi, but there were some interesting people with me."

"I would say the same," Luigi watched several Beezos fly off towards the direction of the boardroom. "There was a girl with cat ears and a tail, and cat eyes and fangs."

"I was with a really tall strong looking toad with a robotic hand," Iggy said. "And a lady with a veil. She was nice."

"We'll probably get to meet them soon." Mario was also staring at the Beezos. "I don't like this Weege."

"Did a fight break out in the boardroom?" Yoshi asked.

"I aint waiting to find out," Mario jumped onto the dinosaur's back. "Follow those Beezos."

* * *

**A/N:**

Italian Translation

figlio di una cane femminaSon of a bitch.


	35. The Enemy Attacks

**Chapter 35: The Enemy Attacks**

* * *

The medical wing of the castle was small, making it easy for Larry and Kamron to locate Kammy. The fact that her name was posted on a small sign outside her door made it even more easier than they had suspected.

Kammy was sleeping in her bed, wires connected to various machines surrounded her and she had an IV drip. She did not look ill. Her skin was a healthy golden yellow color and did not appear dry, or waxy and when Larry grabbed her hand it did not feel clammy. He placed the back of his hand against her forehead and she felt cool.

"She doesn't look ill," Larry said. "She looks like she is just sleeping."

"Iggy explained what happened," Kamron pressed the crystal clear orb of his wand against Kammy's forehead. "Whatever this is, it is caused by magic."

"Are you certain?"

Kamron nodded. He muttered a few strange words and after a minute he removed his wand. "It is defiantly caused by magic."

"Can you cure her?" Larry asked. If her coma were caused by magic then Kamron would be the only one who could wake her.

"I'm not certain," the young magikoopa removed his hat and scratched the top of his head.

"She told me you were one of her best students."

"Yeah, but I only recently started my fourth year of study. Proper studies last from eight to ten years, and after you can go on a program where you travel around the world and perfect your skills."

"Are you saying we need someone with her level?" The only one it knew who was as skilled as Kammy was Kamek.

"No," Kamron shook his head. "Maybe one of the adult Magikoopas." He noticed the intent look in Larry's eyes. "I'll try something. I know a handful of wake up spells and if that doesn't work I will do an energy transfer."

"Try everything that you know," Larry rung his hands.

Kamron waved his wand. "It's a brand new day, time to wake up and say hey." A small beam of white light struck Kammy, but nothing happened.

"What was that?"

"The wake up spell for those who refuse to get up for school, one of the first we learned. The next one is for waking people from natural concussions. I used it on a few troopas once after Mario came for the princess." He held up his wand. "The light shall remove the pain, your body will become the same, time for you to rise again, return once more to the game." That one sounded a bit more plausible, and a bit more complicated, but once again it had no effect on Kammy.

"How many more do you know?"

"Just one more," Kamron inhaled deeply. He placed one palm on top of his wand and held it high. "Awaken ye from this dark sleep, step back from the slumbering abyss, into the world of light ye shall slip and awaken with a single kiss." More light rained down from his wand and settled on Kammy. "One more thing." He kissed his teacher on her forehead.

Kammy snorted in her sleep. Her eyelids fluttered before she opened them. "Step away." Her voice was a dry whisper.

"Kammy?" Larry stared into her eyes. "Kamron, you did it."

"Larry?" Kammy's focus settled on him. "Kamron? Where are Iggy, and Luigi?"

"Standing outside the medical wing," Kamron explained.

"There is a gate," Kammy tried to sit up, but collapsed back in the bed. "A gate to something sinister…in the dungeon…we have to…go in…and stop it." She closed her eyes.

"Yeah, we figured it was a gate to a pocket dimension."

"So tired," Kammy opened her eyes. "Kamron, you have to open it."

Kamron shook his head. "I don't think I know how."

"You thought you couldn't wake Kammy," Larry poked him in the shoulder. "Quit doubting yourself."

"I'm not, but if you going to face against someone like Nosferus, then you are going to need a powerful witch, like Kammy." He raised his wand again. "I'm going to do the energy transfer."

"Nosferus," Kammy pursed her lips. "I heard that name somewhere." She opened her eyes and tried to smack the wand out from Kamron. "No. I will not allow you to take my place in this bed." A beam of light connected between her and Kamron. "What did I just say?" She sat up.

"I did not give you all of it," Kamron yawned. "Just about half and there are energy shakes in the vending machine in the lobby."

"Those weren't energy shakes," Larry said. "Those are cans of that chocolate milk stuff with all the vitamins. They also have the strawberry and banana flavors as well."

"Well I feel energized after I drink one."

Larry shrugged. "We'll you both some of those drinks, maybe see if there are any power bars, find the other and open that doorway."

* * *

Luigi's chest hurt from running. Mario didn't wait for him again, and it was difficult for him to try and keep up with Yoshi. He had also told Iggy to find Larry's friends and tell them what was going on.

He didn't make it to the boardroom before he ran into dozens of Beezos; all of them were fighting against shuffling corpses, several ghosts and the bird women from the vision he saw in Kammy's crystal ball.

"Mama Mia," he ducked when he saw a harpy nose-diving straight for him. A long pink tongue wrapped around the monster and pulled it back into the open mouth of Yoshi. "Thanks."

"They are not tasty," Yoshi shuddered after he had swallowed the creature and turned to launch one of his eggs straight at one of the zombies. The egg struck the corpse in the head before the zombie fell into a pile of decomposing body parts. "You have to hit the zombies in the head."

"In the head," Luigi turned to the nearest zombie as it lumbered towards him. He waited to the last minute and jumped as high as he possibly could before he spun around and landed straight on the zombie's head. "Where is Mario?"

"He has already gone ahead," Yoshi said before he ate another harpy.

Luigi ran straight for the doors of the boardroom. Three more zombies were shuffling towards him. He jumped again and spun around before landing on one of their heads and launched himself once more. He repeated the spin jump attack on the second one, nearly struck the ceiling and came down with enough force to ground pound the third one.

There was another battle going on in side. Several unconscious humans, beezos and toads were lying unconscious on the floor, amongst the dead harpies and piles of zombies. The other Beezos were flying around, striking their spears against the claws of the harpies, plunging their weapons down onto the skulls of the zombies and splashing pure water on the spirits.

Peach was standing on the table, wielding a chair and striking it on top of every zombie that dared to try and climb onto the surface to reach her.

Mario was flying around as a half human half bee. He had already used his only bee mushroom, but he was using it quite well. He was using the stinger to strike on the zombies and was not even breaking a sweat during the battle.

"Not much left," Luigi said before he jumped on a few more zombies, using both spin jumps and ground pounds until he launch jumped off of one and landed on the table next to Peach. "Where is Daisy?"

"They took her," Peach pointed to the glowing white ceiling. Several crackles of purple lighting flashed across the surface.

"How?" Luigi asked when another zombie started to climb the table. Two Beezos struck it on its head. It was the last zombie. There were still several harpies and spirits left.

"They grabbed her and Nougat and flew through the ceiling," Peach said.

"I thought the gate way was in the dungeon."

The boardroom doors slammed open. Yoshi and the rest of the Beezos stormed in. Yoshi jumped and gobbled up another Harpy in midair.

"Sisters," one the harpies screeched. "Retreat at once." She flew into the ceiling and disappeared followed by the remaining harpies and ghosts. Once the last spirit had followed the glow and lightening had ceased and color of the ceiling had changed to the pale mustard color that had matched the walls.

"Daisy," Luigi shouted along with Peach.

"Don't just hover," Mario shouted at the group of Beezos that were closest to him. "Follow me." He flew into the ceiling, and his head struck against the surface.

"Mario," Luigi jumped up to catch his brother, but several of the Beezos had beat him to it and carried him to the ground.

"Ouch," Mario massaged his head. "Good thing this hat is almost like a helmet." He stared up. "What is with that ceiling?"

"I think it's a gate to a pocket dimension," Luigi said. "But Larry's friends thinks it is that one spot on the dungeon walls."

"Larry?" Peach looked at him. "Larry Koopa is here?"

Luigi nodded. "He brought several vampire hunters with him. One is a young magikoopa. They are trying to wake Kammy up."

"How did they-" She shook her head. "Never mind. We have to find Daisy and Nougat."

"Where is Gingerbread?" Luigi had a feeling that Gingerbread had ordered the attack and had gone along with the kidnappers. Either revealing his true colors, or pretending to be a victim as well.

"Over there," Peach pointed to a group of injured men who were propped up by Beezos. One of them was Gingerbread. He had a bleeding cut on his head.

"How are we going to get through that?" Mario asked. "Kammy is the only one who could open it. That kid that came with Larry might be able to, but he is pretty young."

Luigi tried to think. There was possibly two gates to this pocket dimension, this one and the one in the dungeon. They could run back to the medical wing to see if Kammy has woken up. "Wait, if Kammy were awake where would she go?"

"I dunno," Mario shrugged. "We should see if she is awake."

"Unless she had already left the medical wing," Peach had caught on. "She is probably looking for us before she tires to open the other gate."

One of the doors to the room opened again and Iggy stuck his head inside. "Everyone, Kammy is awake." He managed to get out between pants. "She, Larry and the others are on their way-"

"To the dungeon," Mario finished for him.

"Right," he took another gasp of air. "Where is Daisy?"

"They took her," Luigi pointed to the ceiling. "To this pocket dimension."

"No," Iggy shook his head.

"We are going to get her back," Luigi promised.

* * *

Only half of the elite Beezo forces had aided in the battle within the boardroom because the other half were guarding the dungeon. Several had circled around Larry, Kamron, the cat girl, Howls and several other humans and toads, including the tall one Iggy described. Iggy had neglected to mention that an ice flower also powered this particular toad up.

The guards were also holding Kammy back, but they had not encircled her like the others. "You do not understand," she snapped at them.

"Stand down," Gingerbread said. He had gauze wrapped around the top of his head. He was still weak and woozy from the head wound, but he insisted on coming with them and was carried by several more Beezos.

"Sir," one of the Beezos near Kammy said. "We have captured several trespassers." He pointed to Larry and the others.

"One of those you have captured is my best student," Kammy said. "And another is Iggy's brother. He is also a prince of Dark Land."

"We will deal with that later," Gingerbread pointed at them. "I have instructed that this dungeon be sealed off and not allow anyone to enter. I am now revoking that order."

"Sir?"

"The enemy is within," Peach said. "They have captured both Princess Daisy and King Nougat."

"Open the doors," the beezos shouted and pulled the heavy doors apart.

"Every one who is a capable fighter shall go through the gate," Gingerbread instructed before he paused and caught his breath. "I'm not a capable fighter. My work here is done." He turned to the Beezos who carried him. "You may now take me to the medical wing."

Luigi silently thanked the man. It seemed that he was wrong about him, and he truly was doing what he felt was best for his king and nation. He smiled when he felt Mario's hand grab his.

"Ready little bro?"

"Always," Luigi nodded.

The doors were opened and everyone, Beezos, vampire hunters, and Luigi's group poured in.

"Flare," Kamron raised his wand and created a glowing sphere that lit up the entire dungeon and was reflected on the fog that gathered on the floor, and made it easy for everyone to see the large furry monster guarding the gate. It was the same creature from Kammy's crystal. The bulk of its body was as tall as a house and it had four long necks and heads like wolfs. It lashed its spine-covered tail around.

"What the hell is that?" Mario asked.

"A Fafenrir," Kammy answered.

"A Hell Beast," the old toad, Howls corrected her. "That is what it is called."

Kammy gave him a look. "There are several monsters that are called hell beasts. This is one of them, but their proper name is Fafenrir."

"I kept trying to tell him," one human woman said. She wore flowing blue robes and a veiled hood. Her voice sounded quite pleasant. "I gave up after a while."

"How do we stop it?" Yoshi asked.

"You have to cut off all four of its heads," Larry cocked his gun and aimed for the beast.

"I got something that will cut it," the tall toad held up a chainsaw.

"Ready?" One of the Beezo's shouted. "Attack." The several flew towards the monster, aiming their spears at the creature's necks. Many were thrown and truck the flesh before the soldiers flew away. Some were not so lucky. Each of the four heads had snapped up one of the Beezos and held them in the jaws, skewering them with their fangs before spitting out their bloodied corpses.

"That isn't going to work," Luigi said. At this rate most of the soldiers would be killed even before the gate was open.

"They are providing a distraction for us," Howls raised a long blade." Cut of those heads."

"That is one crazy old man," Mario said.

"You have no idea," the cat girl said before she jumped, or would it be pounced in her case, ahead of the others.

An explosion came from Larry's direction. He had fired his gun at the monster and his shot left a smoking and bleeding hole in one of the necks. "I can take a head off with about three shots."

"Now we are getting somewhere," Luigi said as a chakram whirled through the air, left two nicks in the necks of the monster and returned to its owner. "Anyone have a fire flower?"

"I do," the veiled woman tossed him a bright red flower before she pulled out a super leaf for herself.

Luigi caught the flower and felt the firepower surge through his veins.

The chainsaw was cutting through something and four bleeding black hooks flew through the air.

"You want the heads, Squishy, not the claws," Howls shouted before the beast spun around and lashed around its tail.

Mario ground pounded, stinger first onto the monster's tail, causing all four necks to flail about and the monster to roar.

"Mario move," Luigi threw several fireballs at the head that was about to strike his brother. The spears in its neck immediately caught on fire. Another blast from Larry's rocket launcher stuck the burnt head, destroying it. That was one down.

"I figured it would be better if it didn't try to claw at us while we cut off its heads," Squishy explained before he threw an icy blast at one of the heads.

"He has a point," Kammy said before she sent a power blast at the other front paw and removed three more of its claws.

The veiled woman, the cat girl, and two toads jumped onto the furry body. The cat girl leapt when one head came close and she grabbed onto the neck, while the veiled woman and the toads attacked the third head.

Yoshi leaped up with Peach on his back. Peach struck the frozen head with her umbrella, shattering it into several pieces.

"One more to go," Howls climbed onto the body. "Give me a hand, Silhouette." The cat girl grabbed onto Howls's head when the neck she was riding had dipped low enough. She pulled him on in front of her. "You might want to jump off." He plunged his blade into the neck.

Another blast and Larry had taken care of the head the veiled woman and the toads had sliced at.

"Hah," Howls shouted as he cut away the last sinew connecting the final head to the neck. The neck fell to the ground and the two of them jumped off.

"Kammy?" Luigi turned to the Koopa Witch. "Can you open the gate, or do you need to rest?"

"Kamron and I both can open the gate together," Kammy said.

"We can?" Kamron asked.

"Stop selling yourself so short," Kammy said. "Just repeat what I say." She pointed her wand at the dull spot on the wall and started to chant. After a few minutes Kamron joined her. Both their wands glowed, as the unpainted space grew lighter. It almost seemed like it had turned to the color of mist, until tendrils of fog curled out.

The gate was opened.


	36. The True Evil

Chapter 36: The True Evil

* * *

The Gate had been opened, even though Luigi could not see what was beyond the entrance. The opening resembled an overcast sky in December, and while the mist that bled out of it was not as cold it still caused his skin to break out into goose bumps.

"What are you all waiting for?" Howls raised his sword. He seemed to have been limping more than usual.

"I'm waiting for nothing," Squishy had turned off his chainsaw. "I'd just feel better if I had a rope tied around my middle, and someone holding onto the other end of the rope. Like in that movie."

Luigi shuddered at the memory of that movie. Mario had convinced him to stay up late when they were both nine and watched it while everyone was asleep. It gave him nightmares that lasted for months. No wonder he was afraid of ghosts, and he could blame that all on his brother, except that will wait until after Daisy and Nougat have been rescued and the vampire elder had been killed.

"Lets a go," Mario flew into the gate, followed by Kammy, Howls, and Squishy.

A guttural roar echoed through the gate, followed by three identical roars. Another Fafenir was in there.

Luigi tore through the mist and nearly came into contact with one of the monster's immense paws. He struck it with a fireball.

"There is two of them in here," Howl's voice was nearly drowned out by Squishy's chain saw.

There were two of them. Luigi looked up as the mist cleared and he saw three hideous heads staring down at him. The fourth had Kammy in its mouth.

The explosion of the rocket launcher was heard and the blast of artillery struck the Fafenir in the neck, careful as to avoid Kammy. The blast was enough for the monster to release her from its mouth.

Luigi leaped and caught her.

"Luigi watch out," Iggy rolled in front of them and aimed the strange gun in his hand at the monster. An icy blue energy blast escaped the gun and struck one of the other heads, freezing it.

"Iggy," Kammy whispered the name of the young Koopa.

"Iggy, you have to watch her," Luigi could feel the dents in her shell from the monster's teeth marks. His arms were stained red from her blood. "Because I'm going to rip those heads off." His voice lowered into the growl. He didn't wait to hear the familiar ripping of his clothes as he went through his transformation. He yelled at the top of his lungs and leapt at the tall, dark and hair mass.

"Watch out for that head," the cat girl cried as one of the Fafenir's heads loomed towards him.

Luigi released the pent up fire from his lungs at the head and continued to climb up the bulk. Another head darted low. Its neck was already filled with the spears and tridents from the Beezos. Luigi jumped on the neck and pulled out the weapons, making sure to gouge out chunks of fur and flesh before he sank claws into the gaping wound and tore out even more. Once he had reached the bone he used every bit of strength in his body to break it and tore through the rest of the flesh.

Luigi leapt off the neck and clung to the hair bulk until the body came crashing down. "How is she?" He asked.

"She is still breathing," Peach had ripped off the bottom part of her dress as well as the bottom part of Kammy's robe and used them both to press against the bleeding wounds. "I'm going to try to keep her from going into shock."

"Where is Iggy?" He had asked the young Koopa to watch over Kammy.

"There," the princess pointed ahead. Most of the mist had cleared to reveal what resembled a dead forest with knotted and twisted trees, The sky, ground and pretty much everything else was dark. Hundreds of ghosts and harpies littered the sky and were battling against the Beezos and Mario. There were more zombies on the ground, along with at least two-dozen vampires.

"Flare," Kamron held up his wand. The same glowing sphere and had reappeared, but only lasted for a few seconds.

One of the vampires chuckled. "Your light tricks won't work here."

"They won't?" Kamron said in a dejected tone and stared at his wand. "Oh well. Fire snake!" He summoned a bouncing snake made of several fireballs after the vampire. The snake struck it head on and within seconds the vampire was reduced to ashes. "Fire still works."

"Fire works," Luigi ran into the fray. He leapt on top of the heads of three more zombies before he landed in front of a vampire woman. "Wow, you are beautiful."

"Flattery will not get you anywhere, lizard man," the vampire hissed.

"I'm serious, you look hot." Luigi spat more flames at the vampire.

"What was that?" Larry appeared next to him. "Why are you spouting such corny puns? Do you think you're an action hero or something?" He aimed the launcher and struck two more zombies.

"I thought it had to be in the head," Luigi noticed that the rocket had gone through the stomach of one before it exploded on the chest of the other.

"These rockets are made out of salt rock," Larry gave his weapon a small pat. "They can hit a zombie anywhere and still work."

"You have to tell me about your adventure some time," Luigi pushed his brother in law down as Yoshi leapt over them and ate another harpy. "It might be a good story for uncle Larry to tell his nieces and nephews."

"What," Larry just stared at him before recognition hit his face. "Of course, I wasn't here for the breeding season. Congrats, what about Dru?"

"She and Tethys are also carrying eggs," they stood back up. "Tethys and Roy have eloped."

"Man, I have missed a lot." Larry launched another rocket at small group of zombies that were running towards them. "I'm going to be an uncle."

"And I'm going to be a father," Luigi picked up a broken spear. He wasn't going to let his child live in a world where those like the vampire elder still lived. "Where is that bastard?"

"There," Larry pointed to the left. Daisy was bound and gagged and placed on a round stone slab along with Nougat. A strange rock was in between them. One half was silver, while the other half was gold. A tall and pale man with his reddish brown hair kept in natural curls. He was dressed in dark colors including his red lined cloak and he had a black leather headband with a red jewel. He held a knife in one hand and was deep in a trance.

"I know him," Luigi felt his blood boiling. The Elder was the same vampire who had taunted his mother and ordered a Fafenir to kill his father because she wouldn't reveal where he and Mario were. "I saw him in a vision in Kammy's crystal. He killed my father."

"And he is about to kill Daisy and that kid," Larry said.

The vampire had finished chanting and turned to the slab. He held the knife high above his head.

Luigi raced towards them, even though he knew he would not make it in time. He had to at least try and maybe his fire would reach the elder before he did.

Iggy roared and pounced on the Elder. He grabbed onto the knife and tried to pull it out of the monster's hands.

"Stop this foolishness," Nosferus said. He was pulling back with all his might. "You are only delaying the inevitable."

"So are you," Iggy inhaled before he released a fireball from his mouth. Nosferus vanished.

"You will have to do better than that," he reappeared on the stone slab, standing between Daisy and the king.

"I'm doing pretty darn well," Iggy leapt on the slab. "As long as I'm still fighting you, then you can't perform your ceremony." He leapt onto Nosferus.

"So true," Nosferus slammed the blade into Iggy's shoulder. "Lets make things a bit more simple then."

Another explosion followed by salt rock exploding on Nosferus's chest. The vampire fell over, backwards onto the ground.

"Iggy," Larry growled.

"I got him," Luigi was on the slab. Daisy was crying and Nougat was shedding tears out of fear. Luigi pulled the knife out of Iggy's shoulder. "Good thing it's not your chest or stomach." He dropped it onto the slab and had it land next to the strange rock that was half gold and half silver in the middle.

"No," Iggy grabbed onto the bleeding wound. "We gotta get them out of here."

"Got one," Larry pulled Daisy off the slab.

"And I have the other," Nosferus stood back up and grabbed the king.

"Let me guess," Luigi glared at the vampire. "If we want the king to be released then we stop fighting?"

"It doesn't matter either way," The vampire smiled. "The blood has been spilled. He pointed at the strange gold and silver rock on the center of the slab. Droplets of blood had stained its once perfect shining surface. "My master shall awaken, and there is no one here that can stop him from consuming the world."

"There is us," Howls slammed a wooden stake through Nosferus's back and it poked through.

"Fool," Nosferus grimaced and released Nougat and grabbed Howls by the head. "You missed my heart." He turned Howls's head in a sharp twist. The sickening snap echoed through out the area.

Luigi growled and released another burst of fire from his lungs. Nosferus teleported behind them again.

"How many times do I have to tell you?" Nosferus gloated. "I am more powerful than just a mere vampire. I-" a chunk of wood fell down from the sky and struck him on top of the head. He stared up. "Angela." He gasped the name before he collapsed.

Luigi pounced on Nosferus and removed the bleeding stake from the vampire's chest and struck him in the heart. The vampire's body turned gray. His face shriveled up to an elderly man's before it dried out into a mummified skull and turned into powder.

"I was too slow," the pleasant voice of Madam S said from high above. She still had her raccoon ears and tail. She landed next to Luigi. "If I had flown in sooner then Howls would still be alive."

"Don't blame yourself Madam S," Larry told her. "You did your best. I nearly forgot you could use any old weapon made out of wood."

"I don't think it killed him though," Madam S smiled at Luigi. There was something familiar about her smile. He could have sworn he had seen her before. "You were the one who killed him."

"It was a combined effort." He still had to free Daisy and Nougat from their binds. "Its over."

Iggy had used the same knife that stabbed him to cut through the Daisy's and Nougat's ropes. "Now what?"

"We just need to get the injured back to the medical wing," Luigi said. "We should take Howls's body with us."

Daisy shook her head. She removed the gag from her mouth. "It isn't over. Something bad is going to happen."

"What do you mean?" Luigi asked. He looked up when he heard a familiar buzz and saw Mario and a handful of Beezos land next to them. Behind him the cat girl rode in on Yoshi and was followed by Squishy, more Beezos and several other hunters.

"He said blood has been spilled," Daisy was shaking. "To awaken his master he needed to spill the blood of a royal virgin onto the philosopher's stone." That was why they took Daisy and Nougat. "He stabbed Iggy."

"And he and Larry are princes of Dark Land," Luigi swallowed. "And there is blood on that rock."

"It was quite convenient that he had stabbed him," Nougat no longer appeared frightened. "I had forgotten myself that he was also a prince. Otherwise I would have also asked for him to come to the boardroom."

"Your highness?" Daisy stared at Nougat in shock.

"It is a bit of a shame that I lost Nosferus," Nougat was slowly turning a bluish gray color. "But he has served his purpose. He made sure the ones who could stop me have been killed long ago before I was even born in this human vessel. Brought me the right blood and he made the stone, lead several of those hunters on a wild goose chase, but my return to the world is complete." His eyes were glowing.

"Daisy stay back," Iggy stepped in front of her. "He's possessed."

"Get out of his body," Daisy glared. "He's just a boy."

"Sweet and beautiful Daisy," Nougat had turned a complete dark blue color. "I never possessed anyone. I flew into my human mother's womb at the point of their conception. They have raised me well, don't you think."

"You ordered Nosferus to kill your father?" Daisy gasped.

"Yes, and while my mother slept I crept into her room and suffocated her with a pillow. Don't look shocked." A pair of long insect like limbs tore out of his shoulders and stretched out to full length before the ends formed into claws. "Love and compassion? Those are pathetic emotions of mortals, but now I finally can shed this human cocoon that has my true form trapped. I will lead my armies, both of the living and undead and take this world." Another pair of insect legs tore out of his thighs and he positioned himself to lie face up and was supported by his new limbs. His body tripled in size, tearing through the remains of his clothes before his arms and legs split down the center before they reshaped into more of those insect like limbs. His mouth opened and long alligator like jaws tore through his mouth. His chin bulged while the top half of his head flattened. Three glowing yellow eyes formed in the bulge. His neck extended and grew several feet.

"There is no way anyone is going to follow you," Mario pointed at the demon. "Once Gingerbread knows and sees you he is going to order the soldiers to attack you instead."

"You are such an idiot Mr. Mario," Nougat's voice sounded like three different voices combined into one had had an echo. "You don't think I can disguise myself as a human again? Now that I have been freed I am at my full power. I will still use my human form as a disguise to fool those idiots that I rule, and I will use that body for other purposes." He stared at Daisy in such a way that made Luigi felt his body was covered in slime.

"Never," Daisy hissed through clenched teeth and took several steps back.

"Mr. Mario?" Madam S repeated.

"That is his first name," Luigi could not remove his eyes from the monster. "And it is technically our last name, although we just found out it is actually Segali."

"It can't be," Madam S gasped and turned to the monster. "Nosferus never killed the one who can stop you."

"One of twin sons born from a woman from another world," the demon said. His glowing eyes fixed on Luigi. "One who could take on a reptilian form." His voice sounded weak.

"Make that both can take on a reptilian form," Mario said. His bee suit evaporated as he changed into a Koopa.

"And me," Daisy glared at demon. Her skin covered itself with tan scales as a yellow shell tore through her dress. She roared before she sent a fireball towards Nougat.

"Pathetic," Nougat kicked it away. There was no sign of any singeing on his leg. "You have gotten quite ugly."

Iggy roared before he fired more of the blasts from his ice gun and breathed more fire at him. The weapons had no effect on the demon.

"What the hell is everyone waiting for?" Squishy raised his chainsaw into the air. "This is for Howls." He ran up the demon. "Come and get some."

Nougat lowered his head and took the chainsaw into his mouth, clamping down with his powerful jaws. The chainsaw stopped moving before the chain itself snapped off, and the metal blade was broken in half.

Beezos flew at the demon and struck the sharp tips of their spears and tridents at the exoskeleton, but they were not making any progress. Neither was the fire from Iggy, Daisy or Mario. Silhouette and several Toads were firing guns at the monster, but their bullets kept bouncing off Nougat's hide.

Kamron stood in front of the demon with his wand pointed at it. He was chanting, casting some sort of spell.

"How do you stop a demon?" Luigi picked up the knife that Iggy had placed on top of the stone. It had turned into a strange golden tan color.

"I have no idea," Larry aimed his rocket launcher for its head. "Madam S, do you know?"

Madam S shook her head. "All I know is that one of my son's was meant to destroy it." The salt rock struck the monster in the eyes. "But I don't know how."

Nougat screamed and reeled back. His eyes were closed as he shook his head.

"It's salt?" Larry asked.

"Or maybe it is the eyes," Luigi glanced down at the knife in his hand. "I'm a little too big for you to carry."

"Maybe for just one person," She pulled out another leaf from her pocket. "Silhouette we need you."

"Sure thing," Silhouette set down her gun. "I'm just out of bullets anyway."

"Take this," Madam S handed her the leaf. Silhouette grabbed the leaf. A pair of raccoon ears replaced her cat ears and her natural tail grew thicker and striped. "I need you to help me with my son."

"Sure," her smiled faded and she blinked. "Wait, this is your son? I thought-"

"I had also thought the same." Madam S grabbed Luigi by one arm. "We will talk about it when it is over."

Silhouette grabbed him by the other arm and all three ran, leapt and by using their tails the women were able to fly and carry Luigi with them. They flew him high above Nougat's head before they released him.

Luigi landed on top of Nougat's alligator like shout and stared deep into the glowing eyes. "This isn't just for my father, but this also for those who died fighting you and your minions."

"I will rise again," Nougat hissed before Luigi plunged the blade deep into the center eye.

The Demon screeched and thrashed his head, sending Luigi flying towards the ground. The last thing he saw before he blacked out was the demon imploding.


	37. Reunited

**Chapter 37: Reunited**

**

* * *

**

"Luigi," the sweet voice sounded familiar and it was close while it sounded a bit distant a few seconds ago. "Please wake up." There was a scent of talcum powder and lilacs that accompanied the voice.

"Mama?" Luigi moaned. It took him a few seconds to identify Madam S's voice and a few more seconds to remember who she was. His left leg and the side of his head were throbbing.

"Si il mio bambino piccolo," Madam S cooed "The demon's physical form has been destroyed. All that is left is a shade."

"Shade?" Luigi blinked. "You mean like a spirit?"

His mother nodded. "Kamron is trying to confine it into an Yoshi egg, so it will not posses anyone else again."

Luigi tried to sit up and ignored the shooting pain in his left arm. His head still hurt, but it was not as bad as his arm, which was nothing compared to his leg. He had also shifted back into a human. "I don't think I can stand up."

"Then don't," she kissed the top of his head. "I still can't believe this."

"Neither can I," Luigi watched as Kamron stood in front of the stone slab, wand held in the air while he shouted. A dark mist was gathering around one of Yoshi's eggs placed on the round slab. "I thought you were dead."

"I didn't know what to think," Madam S said. Two Beezos landed next to them, both of them were watching the display. "When I finally returned to the Mushroom Kingdom I have discovered Lysander was murdered, and the warp pipe in Boo Woods had been destroyed."

"I'm sorry," Luigi had no idea what had happened to the Lakitu who had brought both him and Mario to Brooklyn. "They rebuilt the pipe, although this one sticks up from the ground and there is a mansion in the woods now."

"We have located their whereabouts of everyone," one of the two Beezos had turned to him. "We have also brought the Koopa Witch to the infirmary."

"How is she?" Luigi asked. The two guardsmen shrugged. "What do you mean you do not know?"

"We have only ordered others to carry her," the second one said. "Mr. Gingerbread has ordered us and several of the enlisted and drafted to assist us." He pointed towards the direction of the gate entrance. Several soldiers were riding in on Ostros, lead by Peach. "We have yet to locate the whereabouts of King Nougat."

"His soul, if that is what you want to call it is over there," Luigi pointed to the egg. The last bit of the mist had been drawn inside and the shell had turned black. "His body is over there." He pointed to the pile of decaying dark blue insect limbs.

"The king has been turned into a monster?" One of the Beezos gasped. "And you killed him?"

"We," Luigi corrected.

"He was always a monster," Madam S said. "He had confessed to ordering Nosferus to kill his father, and he killed his mother while she slept. All of us who had fought will tell you the same."

Kamron sat down after the spell had been completed. Luigi wanted to check on him, but the pain was holding him back. Larry and Silhouette were already by him, along with Daisy, who had also reverted back to a human.

"Mario," Peach gave her Ostro a pat on the neck. The bird crouched down and she slid off its back. "Mario what has happened."

"Lots," Mario was still in his Koopa form. "Luigi, Larry, and Iggy killed Nosferus."

"Our mother helped," Luigi interrupted. If it weren't for their mother then Nosferus would have kept on teleporting.

"Your mother?" Peach stared at them.

"We just found out Madam S is our mother," Mario added. "And she has been alive all this time. King Nougat was a demon, not possessed by a demon, but he was an actual demon and we had to destroy him, well Luigi did it. He stabbed him right in the middle eye."

"How many eyes did this demon have?" Peach shuddered.

"Three," Mario noticed the Calvary. "Who are these guys? Where is Kammy?"

"I staid by her side until the soldiers came to take her to the infirmary," Peach explained. "They took her and other injured near the gate to be healed as well as removed the bodies of those who have died."

"We need to get everyone out of here," Mario said. Several of the soldiers and guardsmen were already carrying the dead an injured away. Squishy had waved away those who went near Howls's body before he picked up the fallen Hunter himself. "How you feeling Weege?"

"I think I may have broken something," Luigi said.

"Yoshi," Mario called out to their dinosaur friend. His horns, shell spikes, and tail were shrinking.

"Is Luigi going to be okay," Yoshi ran up to him.

"Yeah, he just needs a ride to the medical wing," Mario's scales were fading and his shell was shrinking.

Yoshi crouched down and Peach, Mario and Madam S helped Luigi to climb into Yoshi's saddle.

"What are we going to do about that bad egg?" Luigi asked.

"We are going to leave it here," Mario said. "While we were fighting, Kamron went around to see where the other gate locations where. Once we seal the gate behind us no one can enter this dimension again."

"Is that enough?" Luigi asked.

Mario shrugged. "I guess Kamron will explain better, after he had gotten some sleep."

"I have so many questions," Luigi said.

"So do I little bro."

"I also have questions," Madam S said.

"I think you three should ride together," Peach brought her Ostro over to them. "I'll be with Daisy."

"Doesn't she mean four?" Yoshi asked as Mario and Madam S climbed onto the tall bird.

"You are going to hear it no matter what," Luigi gave his friend a pat on the head. "But she means as a family. Madam S is our mother, and she has been alive all these years," he turned to his mother. "I still don't know how."

"Nosferus wanted to know where you were," Madam S said as they started to ride back to the gate. "I refused to tell him. I had a feeling he could not get through a warp pipe, but I still refused. He knocked me out and took me to a dungeon. He kept me chained up in a dungeon and tortured me. He tried starving the answers out of me, before beating me. He couldn't break me. I kept thinking of how you two were growing up, and on your birthday I would sing a little song and picture the two of you wearing party hats, eating cake and opening presents."

"Please tell me he didn't force himself on you," Mario asked. The idea of that fiend trying to assault his mother in such a way sent a chill down Luigi's spine. Yoshi had also shuddered.

"No," Madam S shook her head. "He tried to seduce me when the torture didn't work. My prison changed from a dungeon to large and lavish bedroom. He gave me the most beautiful dresses you could imagine, a pirate's treasure worth of jewelry. He brought me flowers, kneeled before me, kissed the back of my hand. He may have fallen for me because he tried to sire me, or maybe he thought that if I were also a vampire I would tell him your location."

"What happened?" Luigi asked. "How did you escape?"

"He took too much blood when he tried to turn me," Madam S explained. "There had been an attack on his lair, because when I woke up I was in a hospital and was receiving a transfusion. I met Howls at that hospital." Tears streamed down from her eyes. "Poor Howls. Resto del dio di maggio la sua anima, può reunited con la sua famiglia nel cielo."

"I'm sorry," Mario said.

Their mother wiped away her tears. "I'm not quite human anymore, but I am not a vampire either. I have to drink a special medicine and sleep in an energy chamber for a few hours. Sunlight causes my skin to blister. Your mother is a freak."

"Mom," Mario grabbed her hand. "Your sons turn into Koopas when we get adrenalized. If any one is a freak it's us."

"Thank you," Madam S gave Mario a small kiss on the top of his head. "How did you find your way back to this world?"

"For some reason someone's bathtub drain lead to a warp pipe to the Mushroom Kingdom," Luigi said. "It got clogged one day and Mario and I unplugged it. Unclogging it triggered a whirlpool that was strong enough to pull us down. The drain and pipe had also grown larger for us to fit."

"It was like some magical force," Mario added. "We now know that we were meant to come here."

"You two were both plumbers once?"

"We both are," Luigi said. He hoped his mother wasn't disappointed with their vocation. "We both went to community college. Mario got a job first as a carpenter, but he lost that job because he couldn't catch a monkey."

"He was an ape, Weege." Mario corrected. "I was dating a woman who worked at a circus. She had trained this large ape, and one day he escaped and we tried to catch him. Then he grabbed her and took her up into a construction site. I chased after him and he threw barrels after me."

"It was on the news," Luigi said as several Beezos had rushed towards them. "What's going on?"

"I think they are here to take you to the medical bay," Mario pointed at him. "My brother has a broken leg."

"Hey," Luigi tried to wave the guardsmen off with his good arm. "Yoshi can carry me the rest of the way."

"Luigi," Madam S waved her finger at him. "Let them do their job and be a good boy for the doctor."

Luigi sighed. "Yes mama."

* * *

Luigi stared at his left leg as it was held up in traction. The doctor said he had received two breaks, and was lucky they were the only ones. His left arm had some damage to various tendons and had it wrapped in an ace bandage and held in a sling. He also had a bruised lump on the left side of the head, and several more bruises on the left side of his body.

"How do you feel?" Madam S asked him.

"Good," Luigi leaned back. "The painkillers have kicked in, and I don't feel loopy in the head. I'm more concerned about Kamron," Luigi looked over to his roommate. Kamron was still sleeping with an IV drip hooked up to his arm. The young magic student was able to close and seal the gate after everyone had left before he sealed it behind him. "And Kammy."

"We had just checked up on her," Iggy said. His shoulder was bandaged up. "She is awake and demanding Jell-O, and not just any, but the green kind."

"He's waking up," Silhouette pointed to Kamron. Everyone had gathered in their room, even Squishy who barely said anything.

Kamron blinked his eyes and yawned. "Is it closed?"

"It's closed," Madam S told him.

"Good, how is Luigi?"

"My son is fine," Madam S said.

"That is good." He blinked. "Wait you're the mother of the Mario Brothers?"

"Trust me It was a shock for me," Larry told him.

"I never really heard of you guys until now," Silhouette pointed at them. "But I figured her sons had to be at least as cool as her."

"Here that Luigi," Mario smiled. "We're the ones with the cool mom."

"I heard," Luigi turned back to Kamron. "Kammy is also awake and feisty as ever."

"Good," Kamron sighed.

"Yeah," Luigi bit down on his upper lip. He was certain it was awkward to ask the question while they were both in their hospital beds, not to mention how Mario or their mother was going to accept it. "When you both are rested, could you see if you can keep me in Koopa form, forever?"

"Luigi?" Mario just stared at him.

"Trying to be turned back was a gut reaction," Luigi closed his eyes. "I shouldn't have asked to be turned back. I like being a Koopa."

"You won't be able to use power ups," Mario said.

"I know, but you were always better at using power ups. I told you about Kammy's alternate view and how it ends up the same. I was meant to be a Koopa and husband to Wendy. Look what asking to be changed back into a human has caused. You, Peach, and Daisy have become some sort of Werekoopa, and I know Daisy wants to be a normal human."

"Do you?" Iggy asked her.

"Not any more," Daisy shook her head. " I don't mind changing into a Koopa once in a while though. I hope you are not insulted."

Iggy shook his head. "I'm not. I just want to tell you that I think you are beautiful in both forms."

"Thank you," Daisy kissed him.

"I like having this ability," Mario said. "The way that I see it is that I gained a new power up. I'm not sure about Peach."

"I also like having the ability," Peach took Mario's hand.

"Luigi if this is what you want," his mother gave him a pat on top of his head. "Then I will stand right by it."

"I'm not sure if I can," Kamron said.

"Don't say that," Luigi frowned. "I don't want to hear those words ever come from you. You were amazing on the battlefield. You were able to seal Nougat's shade in an egg, seal of the doors and turn a lead knife into gold."

"Wait," Larry held up a hand. "Kamron did a metal transmutation spell?"

"I saw the knife was on the philosopher's stone." Kamron explained. "And I took two risks. I had hoped that it was a steel knife and not silver one, and it was steel."

"Steel is an alloy," Iggy said. "I thought you could only transmute pure metals."

"Howls had said that no one has ever tried before," Squishy said from where he stood.

"He also said that many demons could be killed by a weapon made from bronze," Kamron said. "Which is another alloy. I used the stone to turn one alloy into another."

"Where did you learn how to do that?" Larry asked. "At the start of this you got winded from casting flares and you threw up after teleporting."

"I studied in the library."

"You see," Luigi said. "I know you and Kammy could do it."

"That is not what I meant by not knowing if I can do it," Kamron frowned. "I'm more confident now than I was. I just want to make certain it won't cause anything wonky since the original spell was altered by science."

"Oh," Luigi sat back.

"I also want to make sure your bones are mended. She might want to also wait on that."

"Ah," Luigi stared at the ceiling. That did make sense.

There was a tap at the door. "May I have a word?" Mr. Gingerbread asked on the other side.

"You may enter," Mario said. Who put him in charge?

"Thank you," the advisor entered. His eyes were bloodshot. There was a good possibility he was crying.

"I'm sorry," Daisy said.

"We all though he was innocent," Gingerbread closed his eyes and nodded. "I have been informed of what had happened in the pocket dimension. We have begun to use paint thinner and remove what layer of paints do exist over that one space in the wall and on the ceiling." He coughed into his wrist. "Before Nougat was born there were these strange marks that were drawn on both locations overnight."

"Runes and glyphs," Larry had guessed.

Gingerbread nodded. "Instead of having them properly removed we only had them painted over."

"You didn't know at the time," Daisy told him.

"None of us have. Some of your hunter friends are speaking with a Mr. Avery about removing the same marks in Symphony City."

"The demon will be trapped forever," Kamron said.

Gingerbread nodded. "I'm also here to address another matter. In Sugar Land the crown is passed onto the first born of the previous ruler. Nougat did not have any heirs, or any named heirs."

"What about you?" Peach pointed at him.

"I cannot take the crown for myself," Gingerbread held up his hands. "I have also never married or have any children. The crown goes to the firstborn, to one who has been named in the will, or to the one who has killed the king in battle." He kneeled down on one knee in front of Luigi's bed. "That would be you, your majesty."

"Wait," Luigi couldn't believe what was happening. "It was a combined effort. We should all share the crown."

"You were the one who stabbed him in the eye," Mario said. "Will you stop being modest?"

"But I don't know how to be a king." Luigi stared into the eyes of the others. "And I plan on becoming a pure Koopa gain. How will they take it?"

"We have been ruled by cat people and toads in the past," Gingerbread told him. "Two hundred years ago our ruler was Marzipan the Great. She was also a Koopa."

"I'm going to be king," Luigi swallowed. "King Luigi of Sugar Land."

"If you would like, we will wait until you can at least be wheeled around before your coronation," Gingerbread told him.

"I need to wait," he had to tell Wendy. Boy is she going to be in for a surprise. "I'm married." Oh crap. He never told his mother. "Mom I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner."

"I guessed by your ring," his mother smiled. "You have been through a lot."

"Wendy is going to love this," Larry smiled.

"We will wait for the arrival of your wife, and our queen," Gingerbread said.

"Can I make a few decrees before I get some rest?" Luigi asked.

"What are they?" Gingerbread asked.

"I want the borders to be opened up again, stop with the crippling taxes and rations since there is no war, and release all soldiers under eighteen. Let them go back and be kids again."

"I will inform the kingdom," Gingerbread nodded before he stepped out.

"You see," Mario smiled. "You can do this."

"I guess I can," Luigi leaned his head back. Right now, all that he wanted to do was get some rest.

* * *

A/N 

Si il mio bambino piccolo- "My small child."

Resto del dio di maggio la sua anima, può reunited con la sua famiglia nel cielo- Mat God rest his soul. He can be reunited with his family in heaven.


	38. Healing

**Chapter 38: Healing**

* * *

Luigi didn't mind being confined to a bed while his leg healed to the point when the doctor said he could be dispatched from the medical wing, and he was also waiting for Wendy. His friends had done everything to help make his hospital stay somewhat enjoyable. They would sit with him and talk, or watch TV with him. Squishy brought him the newspaper everyday, and while he did the crossword and jumble by himself his mother read it to him. Mario had brought in a rented video game console and they would play several rounds of games. Daisy and Peach would bring him a gift nearly everyday; sometimes it would be flowers, or a balloon, or even chocolate.

Mario and their mother visited him the most. His mother told him about how she first settled into the mushroom kingdom and how their father courted her and took her on dates.

"I tried to return home before," their mother said while in the middle of a chess game. "A few weeks after my first arrival into the Mushroom Kingdom I wanted to return home. I wanted to go back before, but I didn't know if it was possible. Lucio and I went through the pipe back to Brooklyn."

"What had happened?" Luigi asked as he took another of his mother's pawns.

"They wouldn't let me inside." Angela stared at the board and Luigi wasn't sure if she was calculating her next move, or if she was saddened by the past. "My parents told me that if I left then I would never be welcomed back. They stood by the words and slammed the door in my face. I can still hear Sophia and Tony yelling at them. Sophia and I were always close. She was engaged at the time and I was going to be the maid of honor. I should have stayed around at least for her wedding." She closed her eyes, but the tears still fell.

"Don't blame yourself," Luigi held her hand in his. "I would have also left. Uncle Tony's wife is named Callie. They both raised us as well as our cousins."

"I never asked," Madam S wiped away the last of the tears. "How many nieces and nephews do I have?"

"Eleven," Luigi remembered the last family get-together. "Six nephews and seven nieces and two grand nephews. Next time Mario and I go back to Brooklyn we will you take you with us."

"Oh Luigi," his mother kissed the top of his head. "Although how will you walk around if you are a Koopa?"

"Mario had already brought it up with Kammy," Luigi said. "She mentioned something along the lines of an illusion disguise."

"I see." She made her move. It was clever and tricky. No matter what he would do, she would be able to take one of his pieces on her next one.

* * *

Luigi woke up from another nap, feeling soft lips against the side of his face and the scent of expensive, but not over powering perfume. "Wendy?"

"Yes dear," Wendy kissed him again. She was as beautiful as he had last remembered and her belly was a little bit bigger.

"Wow," Luigi placed his hand on the bulge. "Did they say it was safe for you to travel?"

"Very safe," Wendy nodded. "At least for a few more weeks. I still have another month before I will be able to lay my eggs."

"We'll have to get a royal nursery set up. Wait did you say eggs and not egg?"

She nodded. "Our doctor said I'm carrying three eggs."

"Mama mia," Luigi sat back into his pillow. "Triplets."

"I can't wait," she grabbed his hand. "My poor husband. How did this happen?"

"I got thrown from a nasty demon after I stabbed it in the eye," Luigi wondered why no one else had told her. "I hope you like Sugar Land."

"It's so beautiful here," Wendy sighed. "I'm going to be queen of it."

"I have another surprise, well a few more surprises." He hadn't mentioned neither his decision to become a Koopa to Wendy when he called her. He just told her that he and the others had destroyed the demon that also turned out to be King Nougat, mentioned that since he was the one who killed Nougat meant he was now the king of Sugar Land and Larry was also there. "When I'm fully healed Kammy and Kamron are going to make me a pure Koopa again. No more changing back and forth."

"Oh Luigi," she gently hugged him. "You don't have to. I love you no matter what your form is."

"I want this, not just me, but for our children. They may relate better to having a Koopa father, and I when I had changed back into a human, all I wanted to do was become a Koopa again."

"And here I was wondering if things were going to get better," Bowser stood in the doorway. He held onto a piranha plant in a pot with a ribbon tied around the center. "I heard my favorite son-in-law wasn't feeling well." He held up the plant. "I got you something."

"Thanks," Luigi smiled weakly. He had no idea; Bowser also came with Wendy to Sugar Land. "Seeing you here is a nice surprise."

"I'm just full of surprises," Bowser chuckled. He set the plant down next to the other gifts. "I have something a little more grand for your coronation celebration. Makes me even prouder that this kingdom will be under Koopa rule."

"It has before," Luigi told him. "You can ask my chief advisor to give you a tour."

"Who would that be?"

"Luigi, lunch time," Mario called out in a singsong voice. "I heard your wife is here. Maybe she could help out in the kitchen. The food is good, but I miss her pizza." He entered with the tray of foods in his hands. He didn't even notice Bowser was in one corner of the room. "Hello Wendy. How was your flight?"

"Mario," Wendy had a weak smile on her face. Both she and Luigi glanced at Bowser. The Koopa King was still in shock. His eyes hadn't blinked for a few minutes and his lower jaw seemed to merely hover a few inches above the floor.

"You look quite radiant," Mario pulled set the tray down on Luigi's lap.

"Thank you," she had yet to remove her gaze from her father.

"What the hell is he doing here?" Bowser roared and pointed at Mario.

Mario jumped and spun around in the air. "Bowser?"

Bowser growled. "You little pain in the ass. You are not wanted in my family."

"Luigi is my family," Mario clenched up his fists. "You better not make me angry. You won't like me when I'm angry."

"Daddy stop," Wendy covered her eyes. "You are embarrassing us."

"Embarrassing you?" Bowser stared his daughter in the eyes. "Did you not forget who our enemy is?"

"Mario, calm down." Luigi waved his good hand and arm at his brother. "Mario, please don't transform in here."

"If he tries to cause trouble I might," Mario continued to glare at Bowser. "Unless he forgot about the last time."

"Forget about the last time?" Bowser made his way over to where Mario stood. "Do you think I will forget about this?" He pointed at his arm and the healing scars where Mario bit him.

"Trust me, next time I will do more than just bite you."

"Mario Mario," Madam S stood at the entrance of Luigi's room. "Did you bite this man?"

"Yes," Mario seemed to relax at the sound of their mother's voice. "But he is evil. He once had the entire mushroom people turned into rocks, bricks and horsetail plants. He had his children turn seven other kings into different animals. He also kidnapped my fiancé, I don't know how many times."

"You have been giving my son a hard time?" Madam S stared Bowser straight in the eyes. "Is it true what he said."

"Yes," Wendy answered for her father. "It is true, and recently his actions have been embarrassing."

"So you two are rivals," Madam S placed her hands on her hips.

"Enemies," Mario corrected. "Wario is my rival, Bowser is my enemy."

"I think I remember your father," Madam S did not remove her gaze from Bowser. "Where you not that boy who kidnapped the baby princess, right before the Shroobs invaded?"

"Yes," Bowser was no longer scowling. He was smiling and seemed to have a far off look in his eyes.

"Are you really as evil as my son states?"

"Yes," Mario nodded.

"Mario, please." His mother held up a hand. "Let Bowser speak for himself."

"Yes mama," Mario stared at the ground.

"No," Bowser shook his head. "I am a creature of ambition and plans. I want to rule this whole world. Evil creatures want to destroy it. Smithy is evil, Dimento is evil, the phantasms that attacked the other side of the planet are evil, and so were these vampires that you have fought. I remember they tried to seek an alliance with Dark Land years ago. I told them to get out of my land and threatened them to stay out."

"Why do you keep kidnapping Peach?"

"Cause she is beautiful," Bowser placed his hands over his heart. "Ever since my last wife died after laying her egg I felt this void in my heart. Then I looked upon Princess Peach and fell in love. I sent her poems and then we met. Once she saw me she ran away screaming."

Luigi had no idea if Bowser was making stuff up. He stared at Wendy with a raised eyebrow and she only shrugged.

"That's a lie," Mario said. "She told me about the poems and you both agreed to meet. She did not run away screaming. You took her right there and then."

"That still doesn't change the fact she was repulsed by me because of what I am," Bowser pointed to himself. "She agreed to go on a date out of pity and I took her to get the best cup of coffee in the world. The place to get the best kind of coffee is at my castle."

"But you admit you did take her," Mario pointed at him.

"I was in love with her. Do you know how rare it is for a human woman to be beautiful enough for a Koopa to not only just court her, but also kidnap her and take her back to our own castles?

"That is not how you date someone," Madam S shook her head.

"My daughter kidnapped your son, and you can see how well it had worked out for them." Bowser pointed at Luigi and Wendy. They both stared into each other's eyes and kissed. "See?"

"Well it may work for some, but not everyone," Madam S said. "Your son Iggy has asked Daisy to go riding around on the Ostros and then he will take her to a nice café. Your other son Larry is treating his friend to a place where the can get hamburgers and milkshakes."

"Wait," Bowser held up his hands. "Iggy is dating the princess of Sarasaland?"

"That is what I said. This café does sound nice and I think I would like to go and see if they can brew a decent cup. How would you like to join me?"

"Mom," Mario paled. "What did you just do?"

Their mother ignored him. "It would be nice to talk, seeing as my son and your daughter are married and we are both about to become grandparents."

"I kinda like that idea," Bowser grinned.

"Then it is settled," she turned to Mario. "I think we should leave your brother and his wife alone so he can have his lunch."

"Mom, you didn't ask Bowser out on a date," Mario looked ill.

"Your mother is a grown woman," Bowser continued to grin. "And you heard what she said."

"I think I need a doctor for myself," Mario placed a hand over his eyes as he walked out.

"Wow," Wendy gasped.

"That was a bit intense," Luigi stared down at his meal. There was tomato soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, crinkle cut fries, steamed carrot slices in butter and a couple of chocolate chip cookies. At least with Mario out of the room he wouldn't have to worry about his brother trying to steal his dessert. He didn't mind when it was Jell-O, but Mario nearly discovered his hand being impaled by a fork when he tried to take some of Luigi's tiramisu.

"I don't think it is a date kind of date," Wendy said. "Not in the way Mario was thinking."

"I have a feeling Peach is going to assure him of that."

"I never knew your mother lived here."

"I didn't know she was still alive," Luigi stirred his soup around. "That was another surprise for you."

"It is a wonderful surprise." She kissed him. "Make sure you eat every bite. You have to heal and get strong so you can be strong enough for your coronation."

* * *

_Boo Woods_

"I don't know how many times I can thank you for this," Larry carried the Poltergust into one of the professor Gadd's labs. He never asked how many. Iggy told him there were several and that was good enough for him.

"When you told me who it was I had to help," Gadd said in a glum tone. "Such a horrible fate to happen to her."

"I want her to be happy," Larry placed the sack part of the machine over one end of the Portratfication machine. "I think she would be happier here."

"I hope she will be," Gadd flipped on the switch. "I explained everything to Shivers He will wake up the others for a grand welcome."

They waited and watched as the machine went to work and large gold frame painting was pulled out. Chloe's image was in the canvas. Her exact image was captured by the display of vibrant oils.

"She always was a pretty girl," Gadd said in a sad tone. He and Larry picked up the portrait. "Lets take her to the one space on the wall."

They hung the portrait up in the space between Biff's and Melody's portraits. The others were already vacant. The spirits had gathered around. It wasn't often a new ghost would be joining their family.

"Larry, you should be the one to release her," Gadd said.

"Chloe Phillip," Larry placed his hand against the frame. "I release you."

The painting shimmered before it rippled like rings in a pond. Chloe's spirit flew out of the painting. "Larry, where am I?" She looked around at her whereabouts.

"Your in the mansion," Larry said. "You had been through the potrification. That means you are no longer confined to that shopping center."

"Is professor Gadd still here?" She still seemed to be lost.

"I'm right here," Gadd pulled out a small bag of candy. "I have some jelly beans for you."

"Jelly beans?" Luggs asked from the back of the crowd.

"Not for you," Nana struck him on top of the head with her crochet needles. "We need to let the poor dear feel welcomed at her new home."

Chloe smiled. "Thank you professor." She accepted the candy from him. "You still make a lot of cool and neat stuff."

"I can't wait to show you all the stuff I made," Gadd rubbed his hands together. "But you need to meet your new family."

"My new family?" Chloe stared at the other ghosts. "They want me to stay here? I don't think I will fit in."

"Au Contrair," Van Gore floated ahead of the crowd. "I think you fit in just fine mon chere." He gently grabbed one of her hands and placed a kiss on top of it. "I think I have found my next model."

"Model?" Chloe slipped her hand away and floated back. "Me?"

"He's an artist," Gadd explained and scowled at the spirit. "He makes sculptures, mostly for evil purposes, but he promised me he would be on his best behavior."

"Oh that kind of model," her face turned a ghostly pink.

"Van Gore stand down," Nana pulled the artist back. "Don't worry about him, dear. You can call me Nana. If you need a new dress, even a ghostly outfit I will be able to sew you one."

Shivers floated up to her and bowed gracefully. "If you need anything you can call upon me. I am called Shivers. If you like I will show you around the mansion."

"I would like that," Chloe smiled.

Biff elbowed the butler out of the way. "My name is Biff, and don't think I'm moving to fast or anything." He held out a lily for her. "Just as a welcoming gift. Someone as pure as you deserves a lily."

"Thank you," Chloe accepted the blossom.

"You have such beautiful hair," Lydia said. "I hope you will allow me to style it later."

"I would love too," Chloe did not lose her smile.

"And if you need something to read ask my husband," Lydia pointed to Neville who had his face stuck in a book.

Orville flew high above the heads of the other spirits. "Hi. I'm Orville."

"I'm Henry," his brother followed behind. "You're pretty."

"Thank you, you two are very sweet."

"Will you play with us?" Orville asked.

"Please?" Henry added.

"You bet, in fact I'm going to need some help in defending this place against an alien invasion." Chloe gave both boys a wink.

"Yeah," Orville gave his brother a high five. "Wanna meet our dog?"

"Spooky," Henry whistled. "Here boy." The ghostly dog flew along the floor up to the boys. "This is our dog Spooky."

"Hello Spooky," Chloe gave the dog a friendly pat on the head. Spooky jumped into her arms and proceed to give her sloppy kisses. "I'm going to like it here."

"Good," Larry turned to the professor. "She will be fine with the other ghosts while I return to Sugar Land for Luigi and Wendy's coronation."

"There should be no problems," Gadd nodded. "Oh my. I nearly forgot I also received an invitation."


	39. Ceremonies

**Chapter 39: Ceremonies**

* * *

The day of Luigi's coronation had finally arrived. Mr. Gingerbread waited a few days after Luigi had the ace bandage and sling removed. He wanted Luigi to still use the wheelchair for the ceremony. He didn't want the new king of Sugar Land to be in any discomfort. The man was extremely busy. He had every detail planned.

Gingerbread wasn't the only one who had worked hard to prepare for the ceremony. Iggy and Daisy were working on a fireworks display that Iggy claimed would look spectacular at night. Larry and Mario both made suggestions for the dinner banquet. Mario had a long list and Larry made a few mentions, including milkshakes.

The uniform for the ceremony was covered in clear plastic and laid out over the bed. It consisted of a crisp white shirt with pressed black slacks. It contained a white button down jacket that look more suited for a naval officer. There was even a pair of white satin gloves. Why couldn't he wear his usual gloves? What would be the purpose of making gloves out of satin?

One of the few tasks, Luigi had mastered was managed to get his pants, slacks, and overalls over his leg cast. Things became even easier once the doctor said his arm had healed. Wendy had helped him while his arm was still bandaged, and she still insisted on helping.

"I can get these on," Luigi assured her. "You have to get your own dress on."

"Are you certain?" Wendy asked. She was really showing. In a week she would be due to lay her eggs.

"If my son says he is certain then he is certain," Madam S stood in the entrance, dressed in a deep purple sleeveless gown. There were a few pink flowers pinned to her chest. She used hair dye to make her hair seem more vibrant and to cover up the streaks of gray.

"Mom," Luigi had yet to see his mother wearing anything besides her pale dress and veil.

"Yes?" his mother raised an eyebrow.

"You look nice."

"Nice?" Wendy asked. "She looks beautiful."

"Why thank you, Wendy," Madam S smiled at her. "My son is right. You need to change into your own pretty dress. I will be happy to assist you with your dress and make up."

"Thank you," Wendy gave Luigi another kiss before she stood up and followed his mother out of the room.

* * *

Luigi wore the satin gloves anyway. They were only for the ceremony and since he was going to be crowned king he should at least to dress to impress. The wheel chair was as comfortable as usual. He had never seen one made out of brass and lined with velvet.

"The queen walks besides the king," one of the junior advisors read from the book in her hands. She was a young woman in a white dress covered in dark green and light green stripes, a large pair of glasses and a striped bow in her shiny green hair. "There is nothing in here if the king or queen is in a wheel chair." She flipped through the pages.

"Don't worry about it," Wendy said. She was stunning in a deep pink dress with puffed up sleeves and several ruffles. "I will walk slow."

"You don't need too," Luigi gave the control to his wheelchair a light pat. "It's electric."

"I will still keep my pace," Wendy said.

Luigi chuckled and turned to the advisor. "What is your name?"

"They call me miss Mint," the girl said. "My official title is Junior Advisor Speara Mint."

"Thank you Miss Mint," Luigi said before he inhaled.

The rest of the advisors lined the hallway to the throne room. Each one nodded as he and Wendy passed them. The Beezos guarding the throne room were dressed their best. They still had their masks, but they were also wearing suits. They nodded when he and Wendy arrived and opened the doors for him.

Everyone was gathered inside and dressed in their finest clothing. Everything was so fine and somber, causing Luigi to feel even more nervous. Even Toad, Toadette, and Toadsworth were there.

"Proceed to the throne," Mr. Gingerbread instructed. Luigi swallowed again and rolled his chair to the throne and stopped until he was right in front of the chief advisor. "You don't have to be nervous. You are not taking a test."

"I know," Luigi whispered back.

"By the doctrine written by Queen Ambrosia two thousand years ago," Gingerbread's voice echoed through out the room. "The royal crown of Sugar Land is passed down to the next successor by the role of engaged combat and battle." He removed the golden crown from the throne. It was the same crown that was worn by Nougat. "I bestow the crown upon the head of the new king of Sugar Land. King Luigi Mario." Luigi closed his eyes and lowered his head as Gingerbread placed it on his head. "And the crown of the queen to his wife, Queen Wendy." Gingerbread placed a smaller golden crown on top of Wendy's head.

Luigi felt something draped across his shoulders, and out of the corner of his eyes he saw a pair of hands fasten the golden clasp of a cloak pin across his chest. The crown he wore held some weight, and he wondered how royalty was able to wear it.

"You may turn around," Gingerbread instructed.

Luigi turned his chair around. Everyone, the servants, Beezo guards, his family, Wendy's family, even both Peach and Daisy lowered themselves to one knee.

"You may all rise," Gingerbread said. "Now we may go to the balcony."

"Do you still feel nervous?" Wendy whispered as they made their way to the balcony.

"Not at all," he looked at his shoulders. The cloak was also deep purple and dotted with bright pastels resembling jellybeans.

The sun was half buried into the horizon, painting the sky with rich inks and violets. Several helium balloons that have broken free from their binds had floated high into the sky.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Mr. Gingerbread addressed the crowd below. "I know it is unfortunate the young prince who we have watch grow up turn out to be a sinister creature."

"Sheesh," Mario stood right behind Luigi. "He has to start off with a downer?"

"Mario, not now." Luigi said. He was trying to listen to what Gingerbread was saying.

"I'm just worried he is going to make people be suspicious of you." Mario said.

"Mario step back," Peach grabbed Mario by the arm and pulled him back.

"Your new ruler has defeated the dark usurper who had our beloved King Sucrose and Queen Caramel murdered." Gingerbread continued. "I have gotten to know him in the past few weeks and I can say he will be a benevolent ruler. Now let us welcome him. Long live King Luigi, and his wife Queen Wendy."

This was Luigi' and Wendy's cue to roll up the railing. He could not see exactly everyone from where he sat, but he had seen hundreds of people, his people now, as they covered the courtyard.

"Long live King Luigi and Queen Wendy," the crowed cheered. They repeated the words several times before they kneeled in front of them.

"This still feels odd," Luigi said to Gingerbread.

"I will be here for you, your majesty," Gingerbread said.

"Good, cause I'm going to need you, and your speeches for when I become a pure Koopa again." Luigi said.

"I'm already working at one."

"Thank you," Luigi continued to stare at the sky and his people. The last bit of sun slid beneath the land. The stars shone in the deep blue-black sky.

Several rockets were launched, creating smoking arches until they collided into each other and exploded into multicolored sparkles spelling out All Hail King Luigi And Queen Wendy. There was even a small crown at the side.

* * *

_Mushroom Kingdom 5 months later_

Mario stared in front of the mirror. He looked ready for a wedding. His hair was slicked back just right; he even slicked back his mustache. The tuxedo was a perfect fit. The only problem was that he had to get it custom made. There was nothing that would fit both his height and his weight. The bright red cummerbund did make his stomach seem slimmer.

"Mario we are about to start," Luigi stepped inside. His brother looked dashing, despite the fact he was a Koopa. He shouldn't think like that. He had lost count of how many times he had turned into a Koopa himself.

"I know," Mario inhaled and sucked in his gut. "I should have gone on a diet."

"Pardon?" Luigi adjusted the diadem on his head. He had explained that out of town it was customary for the regent of Sugar Land to wear circlets and or diadems instead of their usual crowns.

"I should have lost weight." He tapped his stomach. "I had to indulge on mama's cooking instead of eating healthy."

"Mario what is wrong with you?"

"I just want to look nice for my own wedding. Instead of looking nice and healthy I got this." He pointed at his stomach again. Luigi slapped the side of his head. "What was that for?" He examined his hair again. Luigi hadn't knocked anything out of place.

"You were being an idiot again," Luigi, pointed a claw at him. "Did Peach fall in love with a tall and lean man with washboard abs? No she fell in love with you. You never really cared that you had a bit of belly before, neither did she. For all we know she probably loves that belly. I know I do. She loves the way that you look when you first met, started to date and she still loves the way that you look now."

"Wow," Mario blinked. "It seems like you got smarter when you got your crown."

Luigi shrugged. "A king has to be wise."

"Well I hope you loan some of your smarts," Mario swallowed. "Because I'm about to become a prince."

"You have two great people to give you advice," Luigi held up two talons. "You have both Toadsworth and Peach." The music in the background was growing even louder. "Mario we have to go."

* * *

"All right," Toadsworth said to the wedding party gathered around the foyer. "You know how it goes. First is the groom, then it's the bridesmaids and grooms men and then it is the flower girl and ring bearer."

"We know how it goes," Mario could not believe how bossy the older toad was being.

"We have been through several of rehearsals," Toadette said. She and the other bridesmaids were dressed in bubblegum colored gowns.

"Ahem," Toadsworth narrowed his eyes. "I know you all think you know how it should go, but a small reminder is always good, as for you Mario." He thumped the end of his cane against the floor. "Just because you technically are going to be the prince of the Mushroom Kingdom does not mean you will have authority over me."

"Mama Peach," Bowser Junior shook his head. They needed someone to be the ring bearer and Wendy and Luigi had suggested they invite him. "I mean Princess Peach does."

Toadsworth placed both hands on top of the mushroom top of his cane. "That may be, but do not think Mario will be running off to Peach for help."

"I never had to before." Mario crossed his arms.

"Uncle Mario?" The youngest member of the wedding party approached them. She was his goddaughter and the daughter of Pauline and her husband, Darien, AKA the arcade king of Brooklyn. The family was one of the few who knew about the Mushroom kingdom, and the adventures both brothers had engaged in.

"Yes Maria?" Mario stared the little blond girl in her eyes.

"Am I going to get married to Bowser Junior?" She was dressed in a frilly pink dress. "He said the flower girl and the ring bearer end up getting married some day."

"That isn't always true," Mario shook his head at junior. "Now it would be cute if it happened."

"Ahem," Toadsworth coughed.

"All right," Mario adjusted his collar.

"Go on now," Toadsworth said in a gentle tone to the children.

Maria and Junior walked down the center towards the vestibule. Junior walked with his held out high, chest puffed out and held up the cushion with the rings. Maria smiled at everyone as she tossed flowers around.

"My turn," Mario swallowed. He walked out. Everyone smiled as he walked by and he smiled at him or her. He caught glimpses of all his friends he had made in the past. Mallow and his parents were there. He also saw Dyna and Mite with their parents, Monstro Mama, Gaz and his mother, Raz and Raini, Captain Jonathon Jones, Goombario, Kooper, Bombette, Lady Bow, Sushi and her family, Lakilester, Watt, Goombella, Koops, the Yoshi kid, Parakarry, Admiral Boberry, Vivian, Miss Mowz, Flurry, Wario who came with Mona and Waluigi, Gadd and Bowser and his family.

"My son," Madam S was already dabbing at her eyes with a Kleenex. It was her idea to invite Bowser. He didn't like the idea of his mother dating him, even if they both have stated it was unofficial. He tried to look for the positive things about it. Dark Land was perfect for her photosensitivity, and ever since she has met Bowser, Mario's enemy never tried to kidnap Peach.

Mario reached the alter and turned around to face the rest of the wedding party. Luigi and Daisy were the first to reach the alter. He was proud of his little brother, able to destroy a demon, has been a fair ruler of his own kingdom the past few months, about to become a father and he still manages to find time to fix the plumbing in his castle.

Daisy looked as radiant as the other women in their brides maids dresses. It was no secret to any of the nations on who she was dating. She had invited Iggy to Sarasaland several times and he invited her to Dark Land. Bowser hid given them his blessing and to Lemmy's girlfriend. Mario wasn't sure who had the biggest shock at seeing Lemmy and Nastasia kiss.

Toad and Toadette were the following couple. A few weeks ago Toad had proposed to her. Once Mario and Peach had returned from their honeymoon in Delfino they would start on planning their wedding.

Wendy and Yoshi were the last two, and after they separated they took their place on the other side of the alter. Wendy was also wearing a diadem on her head instead of her crown and Yoshi was wearing the crisp shirt and black jacket. As well as a bright red bow tie.

The music changed to the famous march and Mario felt his throat tighten. Peach and her father stepped through the doors. Peach wore a beautiful white ruffled gown with a flowing train attached to a small tiara. She carried a bouquet of pink flowers in her hands. She was so beautiful and so perfect. Each step was smooth, and almost nothing seemed to shift with each step.

"We are gathered here today," the elderly toad behind the podium had begun. "To unite two hearts in holy matrimony. We have all seen Princess Peach grow up from an adorable baby, to a charming child to the beautiful young woman that she is today. We all knew many would seek her hand for marriage, and we knew she would accept only the best."

Mario sighed. He always had a feeling Peach was disappointed when he and Luigi were the one to rescue her instead of some kind of dashing prince on a white horse, brandishing a fancy silver sword and protected by a fancy helmet and using the magic from some kind of crystal. Instead she got two plumbers on their feet, brandishing their plungers, protected by their mere hats and powered by strange mushrooms, flowers and starmen.

"Mario turned out to be the best," the toad said and no one laughed. "Both he and his brother and had answered our call to save our Princess and the kingdom. Mario had proved himself over and over again. Mario Mario, do you wish to take Peach as your bride, to have and to hold, to honor and respect, love and cherish through richer or for poorer, sickness and health, better and for worse, now and forever until death do you part?"

"I do," Mario stared Peach in the eyes.

"Princess Peach," the toad addressed her. "Do you wish to take Mario as your husband, to have and to hold, to honor and respect, love and cherish through richer or for poorer, sickness and health, better and for worse, now and forever until death do you part?"

"I do," Peach said.

"You may exchange the rings," the minister said.

"This is the prettiest ring I could find," Mario placed the diamond ring on Peach's finger. "But there is no ring found anywhere that could match your beauty." That was smooth. Could he be any bigger of a sap?

"It is a beautiful ring," Peach placed a single golden band on his finger.

"Now is there anyone who feel these two should not be wed?" The minister asked. Nearly everyone turned to stare at Bowser; nearly everyone except Madam S. Bowser rolled his eyes and stared at the ceiling. "I may continue. Mario and Peach, I pronounced you two as man and wife. You may now kiss."

Mario cradled Peach's chin before he closed his eyes and leaned in. Her Kiss was warm and sweet as her kisses always were.


	40. Family

**Chapter 40: Family**

* * *

Being a king was not as difficult as Luigi had feared, then again he had several advisors to assist him, and Wendy has been a huge help. He knew to try to be fair when listening to the Sugar Land equivalent of lobbyists. There were several papers to sign and many wanted to seek council with him. That was his first worry since he never really studied politics outside of listening to Aunt Callie shout at several political figures on CNN and the government studies class he took at Brooklyn Community. 

His second fear was would the people accept him as a Koopa? His people seemed to love Wendy. No one had ever heard of Bowser before or knows of his past. Mr. Gingerbread had informed him that the former King Sucrose had spoke with the king of Dark Land before, but it was in polite conversation. No one shared the same prejudices as the toads in the Mushroom Kingdom. When Kammy and Kamron used their magic on him to remove the effects of Gadd's machine, the people did not bat an eye or stare at him with hanging jaws.

Thinking about Kamron brought a smile to Luigi's face. The kid is going to become a powerful Magikoopa some day. Even Kammy said he might skip a year due to his advanced skill assessment on the road. Luigi had asked if they had a royal wizard and when Gingerbread said no, he offered the role to Kamron after he had graduated.

The other fighters were adjusting after what had happened. Larry was brushing up his skills on tennis and basketball. He had visited Luigi in the past few months. His friend, Silhouette also visited as well. She mentioned how her parents were doing. Luigi found out about her father and mother and his heart went out for her. Squishy got a new job in one of Sugar Land's hardware stores, and mentioned he was going to save his money and start his own repair business, fixing nearly everything except for the plumbing. He, Larry, Silhouette, Kamron and Luigi's mother visited Howls's grave. Madam S made a few rosaries for him.

Despite the several changes there were many that stayed the same for Luigi. The first was his love for his brother. He and Mario called each other nearly every day, and would often send emails and hand written letters to each other. Mario and Peach had paid several visits and Luigi wanted to visit, but he did not want to stray far from his and Wendy's eggs. He wanted to be there when they hatched.

There were a few other things that have never changed. Every time he felt a sudden chill he would hold his breath and clench his teeth out of fear that it might be a ghost. Some of the letters he had received were from young women confessing a crush on him, for both forms and he felt his face burn up from blushing. He still took care of the plumbing. During the morning report he would ask if all the pipes were working and if there were any leaks or clogs. Wendy was the same way. Every evening at five she would go into the kitchen and help out with dinner. She and Speara's sister, Pepper, were becoming friends.

"We have a bit of a problem with the sugar farmers in Jamsville," Mr. Gingerbread addressed Luigi after breakfast had wound down.

"What is the problem?" Luigi no longer asked where cities and towns were located. He had learned where nearly everything was.

"They are having a bat problem as well as bee problem and a small problem with a few other insects."

"I can understand if the other insects are pests," Luigi took a sip from his coffee cup. "I don't want any harm to come to the bats or the bees." Even if honey wasn't a major export in Sugar Land he wouldn't want harm to come to insects that help pollinate flowers and bats are known to eat pesky insects.

"The bees stay far away from the sugar fields and the bats only fly above to eat the other insects," Gingerbread continued. "They are just finding their way into the distilleries."

"Distilleries?" Luigi raised an eyebrow.

"Jamsville's main crops are sugarcane, honeydew, and grapes. It is where we get our rum and wine and sweet melon liquor."

"Oh," Luigi tapped his claws against the surface of the table. He knew where everything was located. He just didn't know what they were known for.

"Woof?" Luigi's tapping had woken up Razortooth from his nap where he was sleeping, curled up by Luigi's feet. The young chomp came with the other dozen Chain Chomps Bowser had given him as a coronation gift, and while the others had bonded with the Beezo guardsmen Razortooth had followed Luigi into the castle. He was still a pup and Wendy did not want to make the chomp stay outside with the others. He would even whine outside their bedroom at night until they let him in so he could sleep at the end of the bed.

"Easy boy," Luigi reached under and pet Razortooth on the head.

"Your majesty," Speara approached Wendy with a phone. "The call is from your father."

"Thank you," Wendy accepted the phone.

"The bats and the bees have gotten drunk from the barrels," Gingerbread. "Several bees and other insects end up getting trapped in the vats and yes we keep them sealed but other insects and bats chew through the barrels."

"Have you tried smoke?" Luigi asked.

"They have already tried it."

"A girl?" The volume of Wendy's voice increased. "Ludwig that is wonderful, and you are naming her Elise?"

"I'll make a request to Gadd and Iggy," Luigi turned to his wife. From what he heard it sounds like he has a niece.

"Roy and Tethys have a boy?" Wendy asked. "What does he look like? Red and bald like Roy, feet like Tethys. I know we must go. I'll let you know. Bye." She hung up. "Luigi we have to get to the nursery."

"I know," he turned to Gingerbread. "Why haven't we been notified?"

"That is a good question." Gingerbread turned to Speara. "Why hasn't the king been notified?"

Speara pressed a button on her two way and spoke into the mouthpiece. "Why hasn't the king and queen been notified their eggs are hatching?" She was quiet for a few seconds as she listened. "Because they have just started."

* * *

Luigi, Wendy, Gingerbread and several nurses have arrived in time to see a small orange foot kick its way through its shell. The egg was covered in a spider web of cracks and had several chips missing. The other two eggs were rolling around and were also forming cracks. 

"Get the blankets ready," the head nurse hollered. "And get Dr. Rocca."

"He has already been notified."

A small fist and an arm shot through while another hand clawed away enough shell for a head to stick out. A whole leg and a back with a bright green shell emerged and the last of the eggshell was removed seconds before the Koopa hatchling wailed.

"Make way," Dr Rocca made his way through the crowd. "Nurse hand me a cloth." The head nurse handed him a warm cloth. "He has a good pair of lungs." Rocca cleaned off the last of the goop.

"He?" Wendy and Luigi repeated.

"You have a son," Rocca wrapped the crying hatchling up in a swaddle cloth and placed him on the scale. "Good weight, eight pounds and two ounces." He handed the infant to Wendy who was already given a warm bottle of formula to feed.

"Luigi look," Wendy smiled at their child. "He looks just like you."

Luigi looked over Wendy's shoulder at the hatchling. His son had a green head and matching shell. Spikes start growing on the shell when they are at least six months old. There was a tuft of brown hair and the part of his snout with the nostrils seemed quite big and almost round. Their son stared up at Luigi with bright blue eyes.

"He does look like me," Luigi waved his claws. "Hi. I'm your daddy."

"What should we name him?" Wendy asked.

Luigi already had the perfect name picked out for him. "Lucio."

"Lucio," Wendy breathed the name.

"The second one has almost broken through," Dr Rocca shouted. Luigi was immediately by his side. "The third one is halfway through." No sooner had he finished saying the words when another wail echoed through the room. "You are going to need some pink cigars to give out as well."

"It's a girl," Luigi smiled at Wendy. "Tell Lucio he has a little sister."

"You hear that Lucio?" Wendy cooed at their son.

"She weighs at seven pounds and fourteen ounces," Rocca placed the bundled up baby into Luigi's arms.

"Hello," Luigi stared at his daughter while a nurse handed him another bottle. "Daddy has something for you." He brought the bottle to the little girl Koopa's mouth and she eagerly took it. "You are so pretty." She resembled Wendy with her bright orange head and pink shell. The only difference was that she also had a tuft of brown hair on her head. "What are we going to call you?"

"Another boy," Dr Rocca called out.

"Looks like you got two brothers."

"I want to see them," Wendy said. "I want to hold both of them."

"We are coming with them," Luigi walked up to Wendy and pulled back the blanket to show their daughter to her.

"Eight pounds and zero ounces," Rocca called out as the third hatchling was given to the head nurse who also had a bottle.

"Bring him here," Wendy said. Their third child also looked like Wendy and didn't have any hair on his head. "He is adorable. All our children are beautiful Luigi."

"I know." Luigi gave his wife a kiss on her head.

* * *

"Who's a little cutie?" Bowser asked and made a face. He was kneeling in front of Wendy who held Lucio on her lap. 

"I think they are all cute," Mario was seated on the other side of the room and held the youngest of the triplets in his lap. He wasn't wearing a crown or a circlet and instead was wearing his usual hat.

"I wonder if I will be the cool aunt," Peach was holding Luigi's daughter in her arms. "They are the ones who always have candy in their purses and takes them to them roller skating." She seemed to be yawning a lot and did appear to look exhausted.

"I don't think I want them to eat too much candy," Wendy was stirring up another batch of formula. "I don't want them to loose their teeth right after they get them. Listen to me. I already sound like a mother."

"That is because you are mother," Madam S said. Luigi had felt it was bad timing that Bowser had arrived the same time as Mario and Peach. However both Mario and Bowser seemed to keep their peace when Madam S was in the same room with them. "When you become a mother you say things that you never thought you would do. You will have no idea how many scuffed knees you will end up kissing and putting band-aids on, how many birthday parties you will help host or what sacrifices you will make to make sure your children are safe."

Razortooth was also in the room. He was curled up in the middle of the floor. Ever since the infants had hatched he slept in front of the nursery and would sit up whenever heard someone come close. If it were someone familiar he would wag the end of his chain and if it was a stranger he would growl.

"Yeeouch," Bowser cried out. His finger was firmly clamped in Lucio's mouth.

"Lucio," Wendy stared down at his son. "We don't bite grandpa."

Bowser pointed at Mario once Lucio opened his mouth. "He is your nephew. There is defiantly Mario blood in him."

"That's Uncle Mario to you, Bowser. Just wait until he gets his teeth," Mario chuckled. His laugh suddenly stopped and he stared down at his lap. "Ozzy needs a new diaper."

"I'll take him," Madam S picked up the youngest triplet. "You go and change your pants. You know you did the same thing to Toadsworth when you were an infant."

"I did?" Mario had an embarrassed look on his face.

"You did, but don't worry. All babies do that."

"Little Dolly is living up to her name," Peach yawned. Dolly was fast asleep in her aunt's arms.

"How about you dear, are you getting enough sleep?" Madam S asked

"Mom do you need any help?" Luigi had the changing table all set up for her.

"I'm still able to change diapers," his mother set little Oswald down.

"I get plenty of sleep." Peach said. "Actually I think I get too much. I get over nine hours at night and I take a nap once a day and I still feel tired."

"Mario's influence?" Bowser asked.

Peach shook her head. "This has only started a few weeks ago. Sometimes I get dizzy spells and snacking urges."

"Have you seen a doctor?" Madam S handed the dirty diaper to Luigi who quickly deposited it and wiped Oswald down.

"I guess I should."

"After you get checked out you, Wendy and I should do some shopping."

"I have another idea," Luigi said. "Only some of the family has seen the triplets." He and Mario need to go somewhere where they haven't been in a few years

* * *

_Brooklyn New York_

"I know this is kind of a morbid place for a family get-together," Luigi said as he pushed the double stroller through the grass and trying his best to avoid the graves. "Mario, you have already called everyone?"

"I called everyone," Mario said. "All our uncles and aunts and cousins. You know they are going to want us to spend a few days at some of their places."

"Are they all in apartments?" Wendy asked. She was pushing the single carriage with Dolly inside.

"Some places are houses," Mario said. "Tony Junior has a nice house in the Bronx. Aunt Sophia and Uncle Pauley live in New Jersey."

"Which part?" their mother asked. Once again she had donned the long sleeved dress, the hat with the veil and the gloves. She was also carrying a parasol, a gift from Peach.

"Newark," Mario replied.

Their mother made a face. "Ugh, why would they want to live there?"

"They got good jobs there?" Luigi suggested. He kept his focus ahead of him. They were getting close.

"How are you feeling Peach?" Mario took Peach's hand into his own.

"Still tired, but the dizzy spells are fading." She stared down at her stomach and placed a hand over her belly. "It feels harder than usual, but not much is showing, barely a bump."

"Trust me dear, it will show within a few months," Madam S assured. "How is the spell working for you guys?"

"Perfect mom," Luigi said. Kammy came around before they left through the warp pipe and cast an illusion spell on Luigi, Wendy, and the triplets. Luigi looked like his old human self. Wendy looked exactly like Lady Fettuccini sans the green dress and eye shadow, and tail. She was wearing a pink blouse and blue jeans and had her hair done in a French braid. The triplets resembled three human infants, all three were wearing their own monogrammed hats, lime green for Lucio, pink for Dolly and light blue for Oswald.

"Can't really tell that you guys are reptiles," Mario gave Luigi a pat on the back and pulled back in recoil. "Darn invisible spines."

"You might want to be careful," Luigi smirked. "I might accidentally get you with my tail."

"Don't even try it," Mario wagged his finger at him. "There they are." He nodded at the crowd gathered in front of two gravestones. Hey Uncle Pauley, Aunt Sophia, Uncle Tony, Aunt Callie."

"Hey its-a Mario," One of his cousins was the first to see him. "And Luigi, and Luigi has babies."

"Babies?" Aunt Callie was the first to run up to Luigi. "What is this?" She pointed at the strollers. "Who is this?" He pointed at Wendy.

"Aunt Callie this is Wendy," Luigi nodded at his wife. "We have been married for over a year now." How time had flown. Mr. Gingerbread had organized a great party for them. "These are our children. Lucio and Oswald and Wendy is pushing our little girl, Dolly."

"Triplets," Callie gasped. Her eyes were moist. "Che Blessing bello." Her smile faded before she smacked Luigi on the top of his head. "You are married and have three children, and you never tell us? You didn't write or call or even e-mail. You never invited us to the wedding?"

"Ouch," Luigi rubbed the top of his head and was thankful his aunt missed his horns. "It was a sudden marriage."

"You eloped?" Aunt Callie asked before she slapped him again. "Your Uncle Tony and I raised you better than this."

"Callie easy on him," Uncle Tony seemed to have collected a few more pounds and his thick eyebrows now seemed to have two layers. He top half was a silvery white and the bottom half was dark.

"I will be easy on him," Callie slapped Mario. "You never told us either."

"He's also married," Luigi said. If he was going to get two smacks then so was Mario.

"Oh he also got married and never told anyone," Callie shook her head and struck Mario again. "You shame the family in front of your grandparents graves."

"Mama ask her to stop," Mario kept rubbing the top of his head.

"No," their mother shook her head. "You should have at least written to them. You both at least had a way to write to them." She turned to Callie and Tony. "Thank you for taking care of my boys."

"Your boys?" Tony blinked. "It can't be."

"I have returned Tony," their mother raised her veil. "Its-a me."

"Angela," Tony's eyes widened. "Sophia, come here its Angela, our sister."

"Angela?" Aunt Sophia made the sign of the cross over her chest. She practically had flown to her sister. "Oh My God." Tears were streaming out of her eyes.

"Praise Jesus this is a miracle," Tony embraced both his sisters. "Where did you find her?"

"Sugar Land," Mario said without thinking. Luigi gave him a kick. "Texas. Sugar Land Texas."

"What were doing in there?" Tony asked. "Why couldn't you have called?"

"It was because of Lucio's job," their mother explained. "We couldn't tell you."

"Why?" Cousin Christopher asked. "Were you like in the mafia or something?"

"Chris," Uncle Pauley smacked him on the side of the head.

"No," Madam S shook her head. "His job was more noble."

"He was in the CIA?" Chris asked.

"You could say that." There was no way she could explain what really happened, not without risking several raised eyebrows.

"Where are my manners?" Aunt Sophia waved her hand around. "You haven't met my children." She pointed at Chris. "This is my second oldest Christopher." A woman and a two-year-old boy joined Chris's side. "This is his wife Catharine and their son Johnny." She pointed at Chris's older brother and his family. "Pauley junior and Barbara with Pauley the third." She nodded at the four year old. "And little Mia."

"You named her after grandma," Luigi smiled at his cousins.

"This is Alfred," Sophia introduced her third son. "We call him Big Al, and you will see and his wife Bridgett."

"Bridgett?" Mario and Luigi repeated. They never met Al's wife, nor remembered when they got married. She didn't look Italian either.

"Her family is Irish," Sophia explained. "You two had no reason to hide your WASPish wives from us. We accept everyone. You remembered who your cousin Lydia married."

"Yeah," Luigi waved to Lydia and Harold. "I remember the big arguments and fights."

"Why?" Their mother asked. "He looks like a nice boy."

"You will see," Tony winced. "I still feel like a big jerk."

"Our youngest son Joey," Sophia nodded at the fifteen year old boy. "And my only daughter," Sophia pointed at her seventeen year old daughter. "Angela this is your Aunt Angela, your namesake."

"You named her after me?" Tears were forming in their mother's eyes. She embraced all her nephews and their wives and held onto young Angela the longest.

"Let me introduce you to my kids," Tony pointed at his eldest daughter. "This is Lydia and Harold, or Harry for short."

"You have been at their wedding," Callie wagged her finger again at them. "If we accept a nice Jewish boy into the family then you know we would have accepted you wives without any fuss."

"There was a fuss," Luigi whispered to Wendy. "From Both Lydia's parents and Harold's family."

"It did work out," Wendy whispered back. "Like our families."

"Our only son is Anthony jr," Tony continued to introduce his children. "His fiancé is visiting her parents. Christina is here. The twins are still on the road trip with their friends and we have our youngest Susan."

"Twins? Peach and Wendy turned to their husbands.

"Kinda happens a lot in our family," Mario shrugged. "Bethany and Stephanie are in the same university."

Luigi waited until everyone had hugged each other before he cleared his throat. "This is my wife Wendy and she is one of the best cooks, not the best because I don't think anyone can really rival grandma Mia's or Aunt Callie's but for a Non Italian she is amazing." He waited for several relatives to either shake Wendy's hand or kiss her cheek. "These are the triplets." He pointed to the boys. "My oldest and youngest are Lucio and Oswald, we call him Ozzy for short and our second born and only daughter, Dolly."

"You named her after the country star?" Christopher made a motion with his hands in front of his chest.

"No," Luigi rolled his eyes. "Because she is sweet and tiny like a little doll."

"This is my wife," Mario pointed to Peach. "Peach and I are also going to be parents."

"Peach?" Several relatives repeated her name.

"Were her parents flower children?" Uncle Paulie asked.

"They were more of mushroom children," Peach answered. "Well my mother wasn't and my father was only half." She did not notice how pink Mario's face was.

"Say no more," Sophia said. "You turned out to be quite healthy."

"There are two more people we want to say hello too," Luigi stared at the tombstones of his grandparents. "Mama, why don't you go first?"

"Thank you," their mother kneeled in front of the tombs. "Mama, Papa. I came back." The tears fell from her eyes.

Luigi felt two hands grab onto his. The first was Wendy and the second was Mario who was holding onto Peach with his other. Their grandparents would have been proud of Angela if they knew what she had done, and were probably proud of him and Mario. He had a feeling they were watching from above. Maybe they will introduce their cousins one by one to the Mushroom Kingdom, but as of now they were going to enjoy the hometown they grew up in.

_The End_

* * *

**A/N**

The "That's Uncle Mario to you Bowser." Was inspired by the famous line in Mama Luigi

Thank you for reading and the reviews. I had fun writing it. Maybe I will come up with a sequel someday, or I might work on an AU, my brain is churning out an original story and I want to work on that first.

Che Blessing bello. A beautiful blessing


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